ti-to EX-LIBRIS R.ICARP° DE R.OBINA / I i SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY: W. H. HOLMES, CHIEF BULLETIN 28 MEXICAN AND CENTRAL AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES, CALENDAR SYSTEMS, AND HISTORY EDUARJJ SELER E. EORSTEMATsTN RAXJE SCHEELIIAS CARL SARRER and E. R. DIE SEED ORFF TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN UNDER THE SUPERVISION OP CHARLES R. BOWLITCH WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1904 TWENTY-FOUR PAPERS BY mm CONTENTS Page The Mexican chronology, with special reference to the Zapotec calendar, by Eduarcl Seler 11 Ancient Mexican feather ornaments, by Eduard Seler 57 Antiquities of Guatemala, by Eduard Seler 75 Alexander von Humboldt's picture manuscripts in the Royal Library at Berlin, by Eduard Seler 123 The bat god of the Maya race, by Eduard Seler 231 The wall paintings of Mitla, by Eduard Seler 243 The significance of the Maya calendar for historic chronology, by Eduard Seler. 325 The temple pyramid of Tepoztlan, by Eduard Seler 339 The Venus period in the Borgian codex group, by Eduard Seler 353 •Aids to the deciphering of the Maya manuscripts, by E. Forstemann 393 •Maya chronology, by E. Forstemann 473 •Time periods of the Mayas, by E. Forstemann 491 \*Maya hieroglyphs, by E. Forstemann 499 •The Central American calendar, by E. Forstemann 515 The Pleiades, by E. Forstemann 521 •The Central American tonalamatl, by E. Forstemann 525 •ilecent Maya investigations, by E. Forstemann 535 • The inscription on the Cross of Palenque, by E. Forstemann. 545 #The day gods of the Mayas, by E. Forstemann 557 ♦ From the Temple of Inscriptions at Palenque, by E. Forstemann 573 •Three inscriptions of Palenque, by K. Forstemann 581 Comparative studies in the field of Maya antiquities, by Paul Schellhas 591 The independent states of Yucatan, by Carl Sapper 623 Two vases from Chama, by E. P. Dieseldorff, Eduard Seler, and E. Forstemann . 635 3 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2013 http://archive.org/details/mexicancentralamerOObowd ILLUSTRATIONS Page Plate I. Map of Yucatan 17 II, Mexican jminting — Humboldt fragment I, part 1 129 III. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment I, part 2 135 IV. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment I, part 3 139 V. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment I, part 4 148 VI. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment I, part 5 152 VII. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment II 154 VIII. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment III 176 IX. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment IV 185 X. Mexican j^ainting — Humboldt fragment V 188 XI. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment VI 190 XII. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment VII 196 XIII. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment VIII 200 XIV. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment IX 208 XV. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment X 210 XVI. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment XI 212 XVII. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment XII 214 XVIII. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment XIII 216 XIX. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment XIV 218 XX. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment XV 221 XXI. Mexican painting — Humboldt fragment XVI 227 XXII. Plan of Mitla ruins, Oaxaca 251 XXIII. Ground plan of Palace I, Mitla 253 XXIV. Sketch of the fagades on the north and south sides of the adjoin- ing court, Palace I, Mitla 256 XXV. One view of Palace II, Mitla 258 XXVI. A second view of Palace II, Mitla 262 XXVII. Front of Palace II, Mitla 264 XXVIII. Hall of Columns, Palace II, Mitla 267 XXIX. Interior court of Palace II, Mitla 269 XXX. Interior of a room of Palace II, Mitla 273 XXXI. Relief designs from the walls at Mitla 276 XXXII. Relief designs from the walls at Mitla 295 XXXIII. Pottery from a tomb at Zaachilla 297 XXXIV. Pottery from a tomb at Zaachilla 301 XXXV. Pottery fragments from Zaachilla and Cuilapa 303 XXXVI. Pottery fragments from Zaachilla and Cuilapa 305 XXXVII. Wall paintings at Mitla 313 XXXVIII. Wall paintings at Mitla 318 XXXIX. Wall paintings at Mitla 322 XL. Plan of the temple Pyramid of Tepoxtlan 345 XLI. The Tablet of the Cross, Palenque 547 5 6 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 Page Plate XLII. Painted clay image of the god Macuil Xochitl 549 XLIII. Inscription on the Tablet of the Cross, Palenque 551 XLIV. Glyphs from the Temple of Inscriptions 554 XLV. Dress as shown in sculptured figures, Yucatan 604 XL VI. Headdresses from the codices and monuments 618 XLVIL Mexican and Maya household utensils 622 XLVIII. Design on a vase from Chamj'i 639 XLIX. Design on a vase from Chama 665 Fig. 1. Symbols of the cardinal points, colors, etc 28 2. Mexican calendar wheel from Durun 29 8. Symbols from the Maya codices 34 4. Day signs and related glyphs, from the codices 39 5. Day signs and related glyphs, from the Maya codices 51 6. Copy of figure in Cozcatzin codex 60 7. Mexican warrior's dress and shield 62 8. Disks from Mexican codices 63 9. Mexican shields 65 10. Mexican drums (ueuetl) 67 11. Mexican figures showing human heads in eagle's mouth 70 12. Mexican feather ornaments „ 72 13. Bowls from Guatemala 84 14. Potter}^ vessels from Guatemala 85 15. Pottery vessels and other articles from a Guatemalan mound 86 16. Pottery vessels in the form of animals' heads, Guatemala 89 17. Pottery fragments from Guatemala 93 18. Pottery fragments from Guatemala 96 19. Face-form vessels from Guatemala 98 20. Pottery ornaments from Guatemala 100 21. Pottery figures from Guatemala 102 22. Pottery vessels from Guatemala 104 23. Animal-shaped vessel from Guatemala 106 24. Ornamented bowls from Guatemala 108 25. Pottery vessels from Guatemala 109 26. Symbolic figures from Guatemalan pottery Ill 27. Glyphs from Guatemalan pottery vessels 113 28. Figures from Guatemalan pottery vessels 114 29. Adjunct glyphs from Maya codices 120 30. Headdresses and flags from Mexican codices 130 31. Variations of the Mexican seventh day symbol 133 32. Symbols of gold plates and bowls of gold dust from Mexican codices. . 144 33. Figures of priests, from Mendoza codex and Sahagun manuscript 147 34. Symbols of cloth and precious stones 149 35. Symbols of personal and place names in Mexican codices 151 36. Symbols of place and personal names, Mexican codices 153 37. Mexican symbols of persons and places 159 38. Symbols of names 169 39. Symbols from Mexican codices 172 40. Symbols and figures from Mexican codices 179 41. Mexican glyphs from list of names 184 42. Figure from Mexican manuscript, fragment IV 186 43. Mexican name glyphs 187 44. Mexican symbols of various objects 197 45. Mexican glyphs denoting various objects 202 ILLUSTRATIOJSrS 7 Page Fig. 46. Mexican symV)ols for various articles 208 47. Official signatures 215 48. Symbols for certain persons and for numbers 218 49. Mexican figures of the bat god 236 50. Maya hieroglyphs of the bat god 237 51. Maya hieroglyphs of the bat god 238 52. Maya hieroglyphs of the bat god 239 53. Maya hieroglyphs of the bat god 240 54. Symbols of official titles from Mendoza codex 259 55. Symbols of years and persons, from the Codex Telleriano-Remensis. . 262 .56. Battle scene from Mexican painting, Aubin-Goupil collection 263 57. Mexican symbols of years and pueblos 264 58. The five rain gods, from Borgian codex 268 59. The twenty day signs, from Borgian codex 271 60. Drawing blood from the ears, and implements of castigation from Mexican codices 282 61. Self-punishment and symbols of two kings from Mexican codices 283 62. Deity of the morning star, Mexican codex 287 63. Figures of the deity of the morning star, Mexican codices 287 64. Tepeyollotl and Tlacolteotl, Mexican deities, Borgian codex 291 65. Tlaelquani, Mexican goddess, Borgian codex 291 66. Tepeyollotl, Mexican deity, Borgian codex 292 67. Mexican symbols and figures of deities, from Mendoza codex and Sahagun manuscript 295 68. Gods Maciulxochitl and Ixtlilton, Mexican codices 297 69. Relief fragments from Teotitlan del Valle, Zapotec 298 70. Relief fragments from Teotitlan del V alle, Zapotec 299 71. Mexican deities, from Vienna codex 303 72. Symbols and figure of deities, from Mexican codices 307 73. Supposed descent of Quetzalcouatl and house symbols, Vienna codex. 309 74. Venus symbol and figures of mountains and house, from Maya and Mexican codices 310 75. Temple and sun symbol, Borgian codex 310 76. Mexican deity, Vienna codex 311 77. Sculptured slab, Santa Lucia Cosamalhuapa, Guatemala 312 78. Symbols and figures of Quetzalcouatl, from Mexican codices 315 79. Mexican deities, after Duran and Sahagun 319 80. Procession and sacrifice, from Sahagun manuscript and Borgian codex . . 320 81. Sacrifice and tribute bearer, from Mexican codices 321 82. The sun god, Borgian codex 323 83. Symbols of pueblos, from Mexican codices 342 84. Temple pyramid of Tepoztlan, Valley of Cuernavaca 345 85. View of interior of Tepoztlan, after Se villa 346 86. Glyphs of Mexican kings 347 87. Tepoztecatl, the pulque god, from Mexican painting in Biblioteca Nazionale, Florence v 349 88. Stone idol, from Tepoztlan 350 89. Stone figure, from the Uhde collection 350 90. Stone figure of pulque god, Trocadero Museum 351 91. Juego de pelota ", from Tepoztlan 352 92. Mexican figures of the sun, moon, certain stars, and constellations... 356 93. God of the morning star and fire god, Mexican 360 94. Figures of the fire god and other deities, from the Mexican codices.. 363 8 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 Page Fig. 95. Figures of supposed deities, Mexican codices 368 96. Mexican deities and Maya hieroglyphs 369 97. Deity figures from the Mexican codices 372 98. Figures and glyphs of Ah-bolon tzacab, Maya codices 377 99. Figures and symbols of Maya and Mexican deities 378 100. Symbolic figures, from the Maya and Mexican codices 381 101. Glyphs and deity figures, from the Maya codices 383 102. Glyphs and deity figures, from the Maya codices 388 103. Glyphs of the month Kayab, and turtle figures, from Maya codiees and inscriptions 424 104. Glyphs and figures, from the Maya codices 425 105. Glyphs of animals and month Mol, from Maya codices 428 107. Glyphs from the Maya codices 441 108. Glyphs from the Dresden codex 448 109. Glyphs from the Dresden codex 469 110. Glyphs from the Dresden codex 503 111. Glyphs from the Dresden codex 505 112. Day signs from the Maya codices 518 113. Glyphs from the Palenque inscriptions 585 114. Glyphs from the Dresden codex 598 115. Glyphs from the Dresden codex 599 116. Figures sh(jwing tattooing and facial decoration 600 117. Representations of sandals, from Dresden codex and inscriptions . . . 603 118. Representation of sandals and leg ornaments . . . .* 604 119. Leg and wrist ornaments 605 120. Dress of the lower part of the body of females 606 121. Dress of the lower body, from codices and sculptures 608 122. Dress of females, from Dresden codex and monuments 609 123. Mantles from Maya codices 610 124. Figures showing dress, feather work, and necklaces 612 125. Necklaces, ear ornaments, and so-called elephant trunk 614 126. Ear ornaments and collars 616 127. Ear ornament and symbol 616 128. Headdresses from Maya codices and monuments 618 129. A weaver's shuttle, from Yucatan 621 130. Glyphs from Maya codices and inscriptions 644 131. Figures of warriors, from the Mendoza codex 653 132. ]Messengers and traders attacked, from Mendoza codex 653 133. Travelers and whip, from Columbino codex and Chama vase 654 134. Figures from codices showing beards, and glyphs from vase 659 INTRODUCTION For a number of years English-speaking- students of aboriginal American history have given much attention to the archeology and especially to the glyphic writing of the semicivilized peoples of middle America. Researches relating to the latter subject are of exceptional importance, not only because of their bearing on native history, but on account of their application to the problems of the origin and development of writing in general. Investigations regard- ing the American glyphic system have been greatly stimulated in recent years by kindred researches in various parts of the world, and more especially by the remarkable results achieved by Egyptologists, who, through the discovery of the Rosetta stone, have been able to present to the world historic treasures of the greatest value. Although there is no prospect that an American " Rosetta stone" will be found, since only one well-advanced system of writing had developed in the New World, the present investigations along this line are well worth the attention of the American Government. Among the scholars engaged in the study of the native American writing is Mr Charles P. Bowditch, of Boston, who is earnestly seek- ing to promote researches in this direction. He found that American students who essayed to enter this field were greatly embarrassed by the fact that much of the literature bearing on the subject was pub- lished in foreign languages, and often in forms that placed it be3^ond their reach. Access to this literature is essential to the success of English-speaking students of the gl3'phs, and Mr Bowditch resolved to undertake the translation and publication of a number of the more important papers. He advised with Major Powell with respect to pub- lication, and it was arranged that the translations, when completed, should be brought out by the Bureau of American Ethnology. The manuscript translations were furnished in 1900, but were not edited or finally presented for publication until 1903. They are now issued in the present bulletin, without modification, save that the illustrations are somewhat differently assembled. It is considered advisable to present the papers as nearly in their original form as translations per- mit, in order to faithfully record the state of the researches at the period of their original publication. 9 10 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull, 28 The translations were made, under the direction and at the expense of Mr Bowditch, by Miss Sehiia Wesselhoeft, with the assistance of Miss A. M. Parker. Supervision of the publication was entrusted to Dr Cyrus Thomas, of the Bureau, whose familiarity with the arche- ology and especially with the gl3^phic writing of middle America has been of much value in the revision of the proofs. Dr Eduard Seler, author of a number of papers herein republished, was engaged in exploration in Central America and Mexico while his memoirs were b^ing put in type, hence it was not possible to submit the proofs to him at the time. Having returned recently to Berlin, however, Doctor Seler, has prepared brief notes and has made necessary corrections and important additions. These appear at the close of the volume. In 1886 the Director of the Bureau was authorized to begin the publication of a series of bulletins in octavo form and in paper covers, designed for the expeditious printing of minor papers relating to American ethnology. Between 1886 and 1900 twent3^-four bulletins appeared, and in 1900 provision was made for the publication of suc- ceeding numbers in IsCrge octavo form, and uniform in binding with the annual reports. Nos. 25, 26, and 27 were issued in this style. In 1903, in the interest of econonn^, Congress authorized the return to the octavo form, in which the present number is issued. THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE ZAPOTEC CALENDAR BY 11 THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE ZAPOTEC CALENDAR « By Eduard Seler The peculiarities of the S3^stem of chronology in use among the various civilized nations of ancient Mexico and as far as Nicaragua are well known. We know that it was based on a period of 20 days, which were known by the names of various tangible objects, half of them the names of animals, and which were hieroglyphically designated by pic- tures of these animals or objects. Twenty signs were taken on account of the vigesimal S3^stem of numeration, which all these races used. The calculation of the days, however, at least in the prevailing chronolog}^ was not carried on according to this vigesimal system, but the numerals 1 to 13 were combined with these twenty signs, so that each of the sue-' cessive days was distinguished by a sign and a numeral in such a way that when the numeral 1, combined with the first sign, served to desig- nate the first day, the fourteenth day took the fourteenth sign, but with the numeral 1 again. Thus, a period of 13 X 20, or 260, da3^s was obtained as a higher chronologic unit. For onl}^ after the lapse of this period of time did a day again obtain the same numeral and the same sign. In the following table (Table I) the twenty signs are designated by Roman, the thirteen numerals by Arabic, numerals. Table I (first half) 1 I 8 I 2 I 9 I 3 I 10 I 4 • I 2 11 9 II 3 II 10 II 4 II 11 II 5 II 3 III 10 III 4 III 11 III 5 III 12 III 6 III 4 IV 11 IV 5 IV 12 IV 6 IV 13 IV V 5 V 12 V 6 V 13 V 7 V 1 V 8 V 6 VI 13 VI 7 VI 1 VI 8 VI 2 VI 9 VI 7 VII 1 VII 8 VII 2 VII 9 VII 3 VII 10 VII 8 VIII 2 VIII 9 VIII 3 VIII 10 VIII 4 VIII 11 VIII 9 IX 3 IX 10 IX 4 IX 11 IX 5 IX 12 IX 10 X 4 X 11 X 5 X 12 X 6 X 13 X 11 XI 5 XI 12 XI 6 XI 13 XI 7 XI 1 XI 12 XII 6 XII 13 XII 7 XII 1 XII 8 XII 2 XII 13 XIII 7 XIII 1 XIII 8 XIII 2 XIII 9 XIII 3 XIII 1 XIV 8 XIV 2 XIV 9 XIV 3 XIV 10 XIV 4 XIV 2 XV 9 XV 3 XV 10 XV 4 XV 11 XV 5 XV 3 XVI 10 XVI 4 XVI 11 XVI 5 XVI 12 XVI 6 XVI 4 XVII 11 XVII 5 XVII 12 XVII 6 XVII 13 XVII 7 XVII 5 XVIII 12 XVIII 6 XVIII 13 XVIII 7 XVIII 1 XVIII 8 XVIII 6 XIX 13 XIX 7 XIX 1 XIX 8 XIX 2 XIX 9 XIX 7 XX 1 XX 8 XX XX 9 XX 3 XX 10 xx" aZeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, Berlin, 1891. 13 14 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 Table I (second half) 11 I 5 I 12 I 6 I 13 I 7 I 1 I 12 II 6 II 13 II 7 II 1 II 8 II And so on. 13 III 7 III 1 III 8 III 2 III 9 III 1 IV 8 IV 2 IV 9 IV 3 IV 10 IV 2 V 9 V 3 V 10 V 4 V 11 V 3 VI 10 VI 4 VI 11 VI 5 VI 12 VI 4 VII 11 VII 5 VII 12 VII 6 VII 13 VII 5 VIII 12 VIII 6 VIII 13 VIII 7 VIII 1 VIII 6 IX 13 IX 7 IX 1 IX 8 IX 2 IX 7 X 1 X 8 X 2 X 9 X 3 X 8 XI 2 XI 9 XI 3 XI 10 XI 4 XI 9 XII 3 XII 10 XII 4 XII 11 XII 5 XII 10 XIII 4 XIII 11 XIII 5 XIII 12 XIII 6 XIII 11 XIV 5 XIV 12 XIV 6 XIV 13 XIV XIV 12 XV (5 XV 13 XV 7 XV 1 XV 8 XV 13 XVI XVI 1 XVI 8 XVI 2 XVI 9 XVI 1 XVII 8 XVII 2 XVII 9 XVII 3 XVII 10 XVII 2 XVIII 9 XVIII 3 XVIII 10 XVIII 4 XVIII 11 XVIII 3 XIX 10 XIX 4 XIX 11 XIX 5 XIX 12 XIX 4 XX 11 XX 5 XX 12 XX 6 XX 13 XX This period of 260 days, the tonalamatl (''book of days"), in Mexican, ch'ol k'ih ('* reckoning- of days''), or k'am uuh (''book of fates"), in Guatemalleoan, was on the contrary called by the Mayas in Guatemala, it seems — ^though the general opinion is different — kin katun ("the order of days"), and was made to agree with the rest of the system of chronology in various ways. The nations of ancient Mexico reckoned 365 days to their 3^ear. This appears from the nature of their designation of the year and from the number of years which they combined into a larger period. Since 365 = (28X13) + 1 and also (18X20) + 5, it follows that when, for instance, a year began with a da}^ which took the numeral 1 and the sign I, then the initial da}^ of the following year must necessarily have been called by the numeral 2 and sign VI, that of the third year by numeral 3 and sign XI, of the fourth year by numeral 4 and sign XVI; while the initial da}' of the fifth year would take the numeral 5 and go back to sign I. We have thus the following series of begin- nings of years: SELER] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 15 Table II 1 I 1 VI 1 XI 1 XVI 1 I 2 VI 2 XI 2 XVI 2 I And so 3 XI 3 XVI 3 I 3 VI on, as at 4 XVI 4 I 4 VI 4 XI the be- 5 I 5 VI 5 XI 5 XVI ginning. 6 VI 6 XI 6 XVI 6 I 7 XI 7 XVI 7 I 7 VI 8 XVI 8 I 8 VI 8 XI 9 I 9 VI 9 XI 9 XVI 10 VI 10 XI 10 XVI 10 I 11 XI 11 XVI 11 I 11 VI 12 XVI 12 I 12 VI 12 XI 13 I 13 vi 13 XI 13 XVI We see that, if we presuppose a 3^ear of 365 days, onl}^ four of the twent}^ day signs fall on initial days — four signs which are five signs distant from each other. And we see that if we accept the theory of a year of 365 da3^s a period of 52 years necessarily ensues. For since 365 — 5 X 73, and 73 is a prime number, it can only occur after 260-^5, or 52, 3^ears, that the same number and the same sign of the tonalamatl will fall on the initial day of the year. Now we know by the unanimous statements of his- torians and documents that the Mexican nations designated their years after the fashion shown by the above tables of initial days of the year, and it is authoritatively stated of certain races that these names of the years were taken from the names of their initial days. On the other hand, we know that all the ancient nations of Mexico knew a period of 52 years and reckoned by it. We must therefore conclude that the year of 365 days was indeed accepted in Mexico, as was stated above, and therefore that the computation of time fell behind the actual length of the year by 6 hours, 9 minutes, and 10 seconds in the inter- calary year and by 5 hours, -1:8 minutes, and 48 seconds in the ordinary year. This simple and clear, and, when we consider the degree of civilization of the ancient Mexicans, by no means very remarkable fact, has up to the present time been obstinately overlooked by the authors who have written upon Mexican chronology. There are three circumstances in particular which interfere with a correct conception of the state of affairs — first, certain assumptions in respect to the last five days of the year; then, the assertions of historians in regard to interpolations which are supposed to have taken place at certain regularly recurring periods; and, lastly, the variability of the beginning of the year among various races and also, as it seems, at various times, which has hitherto 16 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 rendered impossible any authentic, concordance of fixed historically ceitified dates of the Mexican calendar with our chronology. The chronologic unit, 20 days, is contained eighteen times in 365 days. Each of these eighteen twenties — falsely called ''months" by the Spanish — was dedicated to a special deit}^ and gave rise to a special lestival, which was connected with the season of the year, the work to be done at that season, and with that which was expected of the season, live days were left over, to which, as superfluous, a certain sinister meaning was ascribed. The Mexicans called them nemontemi or nen-ontemi, that is, "the superfluous, supplementary days'', with the secondar}^ significance, ''the useless days, which were consecrated to no deity, useful for no civic business" — acam pouhqui, "which neither fell to any nor were dedicated to any, which were held in no esteem", as appears from the Aztec text of book 2, chapter 37, of the historical work by Father Sahagun, in which they are explained in these words: Estos cinco dias a ningun dios estan dedicados, y por eso les llamavan nemontemi, que quiere decir por demas (" These five da3^s are dedicated to no god, and hence they are called nemontemi, which is to say superfluous "). They were held to be harmful days (baldios y aciagos). For with the word nen, " that which exceeds", was also connected the idea of "superfluous", "unfit", "useless". No action of any importance whatever, nor any which transcended the circle of the most necessary oflices of life, was undertaken. The house was not swept, no cause was tried, and the imfortunate person who was born on one of these days, "is destined to no happiness; miserable and wretched and poor shall he live upon the earth" (quihiotinemiz ompa onquiztinemiz yn tlalticpac). But these days had, especially, a prophetic power for the whole year (ayac teauaya, ayac manaya, auh yn aca oncan teaua, quilmach cenquicui) " No one quarreled, no one got into any dispute, for whoever quarreled on these days, it was believed, would always continue to do so ", we read in Sahagun's Aztec text. And still more explicit is another passage, which Sahagun gives in the following words: Guardabanse en estos dias fatales, de dormir entre dia, ni de renir unos con otros, ni de tropezar, ni de caer, porque decian que si alguna cosa de estas les acontecia que siempre les habia de acontecer adelante ("They were careful during these fatal days not to fall asleep during the day, not to quarrel together, not to trip or to fall, because they said that if any of these things befell them, they would continue to befall them thence forevermore"). We find the same notion in Yucatan. On these days men left the house as seldom as possible, did not wash or comb themselves, and took special care not to undertake any menial or diflScult task, doubt- less because they lived in the conviction that the}^ would be forced to keep on doing it through the whole ensuing year. The Mexicans were BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 28 PLATE I MAP OF YUCATAN seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 17 more passive in regard to these da3\s, inasmuch as they merely took care to avoid conjuring up mischief for the coming- year, while the Mayas did things more thoroughly. During these days, so portentous for the entire year, they banished the evil which might threaten them. They prepared a clay image of the demon of evil, Uuayaj^ab, that is, u-ua3^ab-haab ("by whom the year is poisoned"), confronted it with the deity who had supreme power during the year in question, and then carried it out of the village in the direction of that cardinal point to which the new year belonged. Of these five days writers commonly say " they were not counted." And we take this to mean that the ordinary designation of the days by numerals and signs was not applied to these days. It is true that Sahagun's Aztec text affords ground for this supposition, for it says of the nemontemi: Yn aoctle yn toca tonalli, yn aocmo ompouih, yn aocmo om pouhque ("The days no longer have names; they are no longer counted"). And farther on: Ca atle y tonal, ca atle ytoca . . . ca nel amo ompouhque atle ypouallo ("They have no signs, no names . . . for in truth they are not counted"). Duran states even more clearly: Los cinco dias que sobraban, tenian los esta nacion .por dias aciagos, sin cuenta ni provecho; asi los dejaban en bianco, sin ponerles figura ni cuenta, y asi los llamaban nemontemi, que quiere decir dias demasiados y sin provecho ("The five days that remained this nation held to be unfortunate days, of no account or advantage; so they left them blank, without giving them figure or account, and so called them nemontemi, which means days superfluous and of no advantage"). In Yucatan these days were also directly designated as xma kaba kin ("days without names"). And what Duran states is illustrated in Landa; in the calendar recorded by him, the five superfluous days are left blank, without number or sign. Are we therefore actually to suppose that these days interrupted the con- tinuous tonalamatl calculation ? 1 think not. The acam pouhqui and aocmo ompouhque do not state that these days are dropped out of the reckoning, but, as Sahagun also quite correctly explains, that no feast was celebrated .upon them; that they were held improper and worth- less for civic action. Compare acan ompoui, cosa insuticiente y falta, 6 persona de quien no se hace caso ("insufficient and faulty thing, or person held of no account"). (Molina.) We must also attach the same meaning to the phrase atle ytoca and the Maya designation xma kaba kin. And if these days were left blank, according to Duran and Landa, this only signified that men avoided mentioning these unlucky days in any way. They were counted in silence. Otherwise Landa, for instance, could not state that the successive years began with the dominical letters Kan, Muluc, Ix, Cauac, that is, with signs IV, IX, XIV, XIX; but we should have to assume, as, indeed, old Gama does, 7238— No. 28— 05- 2 18 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 thoug-h doubtless incorrectly, that all years beg-an with the same num- eral and the same sign. It seems, on the contrary, to be correct, as Gama (Dos Piedras, page 75) states, that the five days nemontemi were destitute of acom- panados, that is, that the constantly repeated series of the nine so-called senores de la noche ("lords of the night"), which were continuousl}^ counted along with the signs for the days, were onh^ extended to the three hundred and sixtieth day of the year. Gama's chief sources for his assertions in regard to the old chronology are the notes written in the Mexican language by Don Cristobal del Castillo, an Indian of the aristocratic Tetzcocan race, who died in 1606 at the age of 80. His notes are also undoubtedly the source from which Gama took the calendar which he prints on pages 62 to 75 of his book, and this therefore has the authority of unbroken tradition in its favor. This calendar begins the year with ce Cipactli, that is, II, and further counts the nemontemi with numerals and signs (10 1, 11 II, 12 III, 13 IV, 1 V). But the series of nine senores de la noche breaks off with the three hundred and sixtieth day of the 3^ear. Orozco y Berra makes the interesting suggestion that the object of this double computation was to distinguish the days of the year which, by the tonalamatl reckon- ing, would take the same numeral and sign, by omitting the "acom- panado". In fact, if the first day of the year, which Gama places on the 9th of January, were distinguished by 11, then the two hundred and sixty -first day of the 3^ear, that is, September 26, would receive the same name. But if the first day (II, or January 9) were accom- panied by the first of the "acompanados" (Xiuhtecutli Tletl), the last day (II, or September 26) would take the ninth (Quiauitl-Tlaloc), for 260-4-9 = 28 and 8 over. If Gama's statement that the nemontemi are destitute of acompanados be correct, then the successive years would alwa3^s begin with the same acompanado. And if we take the first of them, the fire god, as that of the initial day, we may perhaps have in this circumstance the simple explanation of the most com- mon of the various names of the fire god, that is, Xiuhtecutli ('^Lord of the year"). With the nemontemi are connected the oldest statements in i-egard to interpolations, which are said to have been made at stated periods by the Mexicans, in ord'er to bring their year of 365 days into har- mony with the actual length of the solar 3^ ear. Father Sahagun says in the heading to the nineteenth chapter of his second book: Hay conjetura que cuando ahujeraban las orejas a los ninos y ninas, que era de cuatro en cuatro ailos, echaban seis dias de nemontemi, y es lo mismo del bisiesto, que nosotros hacemos de cuatro en cuatro anos ("There is a conjecture that when they pierced the ears of the boys and girls, which was every four years, the}^ rejected six days as nemontemi, and it is the same as the leap year which we make every four years"). seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 19 And in another place: Otra rtesta hacian de cuatro en cuatro anos a honra del fuego, en la qual ahujeraban las orejas a todos los niiios, y la llamaban pillauanaliztli, y en esta fiesta es verosimil y hay conjeturas que hacian su bisiesto, contando seis dias de nemontemi ("They cele- brated another festival every four years in honor of tire, in which the}^ pierce the ears of all the children, and they called it pillauanaliztli, and in this festival it is probable and there are conjectures that they made their leap year, counting six days as nemontemi"). Observe, the Father sa3^s: Es verosimil 3" ha}^ conjeturas (''It is probable and it is conjectured"). He does not say that he has heard it, and, indeed, there is not a word about it in the passages in question of the Aztec text. Father Sahagun's conjecture is repeated as an actual fact by later authors. The learned Dominican Father Burgoa gives it as such in regard to the Mixteca and the inhabitants of Tehuantepec (Geografica Descripcion, quoted by Orozco y Berra, volume 2, page 136), without furnishing any evidence for his assertion. On the other hand, other ancient authors directly contradict this supposition. Father Motolinia, who was one of the first missionaries to the country, saj^s: Los indios naturales de esta Nueva Espana, al tiempo que esta tierra se gano y entraron en el la los Espanoles, comenzaban su ano en principios de Marzo; mas por no alcanzar bisiesto, van variando su ano por todos los meses ("The native Indians of this New Spain, at the time when this land was gained and the Spaniards entered into it, commenced their 3^ear at the beginning of March; but not under- standing leap year they keep changing their year through all the months"). Father Tonpiemada is of the same opinion. And the author of the Chronica de la S. Provincia del Santissimo Nombre de Jesus de Guatemala of the year 1683 remarks: Porque como ni los Mexicanos ni estos (los Guatemaltecas) alcanzaron el bisiesto . . . se apartaban y diferenciaban de nuestro calendario, y asi ni estos ni los Mexicanos comenzaban siempre su ano a primero de nuestro Febrero sino que cada cuatro anos se atrasaban un dia . . . ("Because since neither the Mexicans nor these (the Guatemalans) understood leap year . . . they differed from our calendar, and so neither they nor the- Mexicans commenced their year always at the first of our Febru- ary, but every four 3^ears they were behind one day . . . "). Indeed, had such an intercalation actually occurred, the period of 52 years and the consequent further designation of the days in it would be an absurdity; or, at least, this intercalation must have been noted as an important factor in every enumeration extending over the period of four 3"ears. But I have not hitherto been able to tind any trace of it either in the Aztec or the Maya manuscripts. Knowing the difiicult3^ of establishing any agreement in this way between the old Indian chronology and the more correct European computation of time, later writers have suggested that an entire week 20 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 of 13 days was interpolated at the end of the xiuhmolpilli, the period of 52 years. This theor}^ is probably to be ascribed to the learned Jesuit Don Carlos Sigi'ienza y Gongora, who lived in the second half of the seventeenth century. The work of this author, Ciclografia Mexicana, is apparently lost, but Genielli Carreri and Clavigero refer to it. Sigiienza had important documents at his disposal, papers and picture manuscripts, which belonged to Don Juan de Alva Ixtlilxochitl, a descendant of the royal Tetzcocan family, and he was a trained astronomer. His conjecture is all the more acceptable also because it leaves the arrangement of the da3^s in the period of 52 years untouched. In spite of this I think that his assertions rest upon groundless con- jectures. Nowhere in the older authors do we learn that a festival of 13 days' duration was held at the end of the period of 52 j^ears. They always refer to one night only, the turning point of the century, dur- ing which the people awaited the flaming up of the new fire upon Uixachtepec with fear and trembling. In the picture manuscripts we find periods of time set down which extend over the period of 52 years, and where the arrangement of the days is carried over without a jump from one period to the other (see, for instance, pages 46 to 50 of the Dresden manuscript, the well-known pages from which E. Forstemann proved the series of dates to be 236, 90, 250, and 8 days apart). On them are recorded, beginning with the day 1 Ahau, the thirteenth of the month Mac, 13 X 2,920 days, or a period of 13 X 8, that is, 2 X 52, or 104, years, in dates separated by regular distances, without a hiatus of any kind between one and the other of the two cycles of 52 years. Still greater periods of time are noted down upon the last leaves of the Dresden manuscript by continuous, uninterrupted dates accompanied b}^ check numbers. But the advocates of intercalation also appeal to manuscripts. Clavigero (volume 2, page 62) says: Questi tredici giorni erano gl'intercalari, segnati nelle lor dijunture con punti turchini; non gli contavano nel secolo gia compito, neppur nel seguente, ne continu- avano in esse i periodi di giorni, che andavano sempre numerando dal primo sino alio ultimo giorno del secolo (" These thirteen days were the intercalary ones, designated in printing them by blue dots; they were not counted in the century already completed, nor in the follow- ing one either, nor were the periods of days continued in them which were continuously numbered from the first to the last day of the century"). Clavigero himself has not seen these manuscripts, but refers to Don Carlos Sigiienza. The materials which Sigiienza pos- sessed seem for the most part to have passed into the possession of Boturini. In consequence of their seizure b}^ vice-regal authority the}^ disappeared from the scene. A part of them are in the Aubin collec- tion, whose present owner is M Eugene Goupil, of Paris. I do not think that there are any papers among them which justify Clavigero's sei.kr] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 21 assertion. And yet 1 have seen blue numeral signs in a Maya manu- script, which might be interpreted in the sense of a correction or possibly also of an interpolation. On pages 23 and 24 of the Perez codex, the Mexican manuscript of the Hibliotheque Nationale at Paris are thirteen colunms of 5 days each, which must be read from right to left and from above downward, as the addition and as the position of the hieroglyphs show, which, unlike the mode of writing employed elsewhere in the Maya manuscripts, is face backward (to the left). The separate dates in the series each differ l)y 28 days and the last date in the first (top) row differs from the tirst date in the second row by 28 days also. There are in all 5 X 13 X 28, or 7 X 260 days, that is, the space of 7 tonalaniatl. The numerals belonging" to the dates of the days are, as usual, written in red, but above or below each column of figures another figure is written in blue, which would denote a date some 20 da3\s further on. This is evidently a correction, but scarcely one which can be taken for a sort of intercalation. It is a correction which states what ffgures belong to the dates when the beginning of the whole series is pushed forward by a unit of 20 days. Leon y Gama varies Sigiienza's theory of intercalation by stating (Dos Piedras, pages 52 and 53) that the Mexicans interpolated 25 days at the close of a double cycle of 101 years, or 12^ days at the end of a 52-year cycle, and according to this the days of the one cycle began in the morning, those of the other in the evening. But this is mere spec- ulation. Finally, the theory of the Jesuit Fabrega, with which A. von Humboldt agrees (Vue des Cordilleres, volume 2, page 81), that the Mexicans suppressed 7 days at the close of a great period of 20 cycles, or 1,040 years, and thus reduced their year to almost the exact length of the tropical year, rests upon an actual error. The passage in question from the Borgian codex (pages 62 to 66) by no means treats of so long a space of time. The simple series of twenty day signs is repre- sented by beginning with Malinalli, or XII, on page 66 and ending on page 62 with Ozomatli, or XI. The signs were undoubtedly originally intended to be distributed around four sides of a square with the last (Ozomatli) in the middle. If, as I believe, the theory of intercalation is to be rejected, the question arises all the more forcibly. How did the Mexicans contrive to make their S3^stem of chronology agree with the actual time? Must they not have speedily observed that their annual feasts, which fell in portions of the year determined by the course of the sun, the alterna- tion of wet and dry weather, winter sleep and perfection of vegetation, were noticeably advanced in the course of successive years ? Doubtless they did observe it, but they could hardly have known how to remedy it. And doubtless the confused and contradictory statements given by the Indians themselves in regard to the time of their new year and the true time of the various festivals were due to this uncertainty, to 22 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 the lack of intercalations. Es de notar ("It is to be noted"), says Sahagun at the close of his seventh book, que discrepan mucho en diversos lugares del principio del ano; en unas partes me dijeron que comenzaba a tantos de Enero; en otras que a primero de Febrero; en otras que a principios de Marzo. En el Tlaltelolco junte muchos viejos, los mas diestros que yo pude aver, y juntamente con los mas habiles de los colegiales se alterco esta materia por muchos dias, y todos ellos concluyeron, diciendo, que comenzaba el ano el segundo dia de Febrero ("that the beginning of the year diflers greatl3Mn d-itferent places; in some parts they told me that it began on such a day in Januar}^; in others on the 1st of Februar^^; in others at the beginning of March. In Tlaltelolco 1 as8em])led many old men, the most skillful possible, and together with the most learned scholars they disputed as to this matter for man}^ days, and they all concluded by saying that the 3^ear began on the second day of February "). The festivals connected with the course of the seasons, with their elaborate ceremonies, had undoul)tedly been observed from the earliest ages and were similarly celebrated over large portions of the country. The fixing of the beginning of the year was closely connected with these festivals, and was also, as may positively be asserted, originally the same over large portions of the coiuitry. The earlier, however, that a tribe gave up vaguel}^ determining these festivals according to the course of the sun and the condition of the crops and the priests began to keep iiccount of them by means of the continuous tonalamatl computation, the more nmst the beginning of the year and the festi- vals, or the relation of the latter to the beginning of the year, have been displaced for that tribe. There is reason to believe that what the Indian conference called together at Tlaltelolco by Sahagun finally determined, namely, that the 3^ear began with the Quauitleua, the feast of the rain god (Tlaloque), and on the 2d of February, according to Christian computation, very nearly corresponded to the original custom; for in far distant Yucatan, inhabited by a different civilized nation, we find an approach to this idea in Landa's statement that the Mayas celebrated in honor of the rain gods (Chac), the feast Ocna ("Entrance into the house"), or, as Landa translates it, "Renewal of the temple", in one of the so-called months (really units of 20 days) Chen and Yax; that is, about the month of January, on a day which the priests expressl}^ deter- mined, doubtless according to the chronology kept b}^ them. Mira- ban los pronosticos de los Bacabes ("They beheld the prophecies of the Bacabs"); that is, the3^ decided according to the deity who ruled over the year whether the 3^ear would be good or bad. Y demas desto renovavan los idolos de barro y sus braseros, y si era menester, hacian de nuevo la casa 6 renovabanla, y ponian en la pared la memoria destas cosas con sus caracteresX"And besides this they renewed their sei.kk] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 23 idols of clay and their braziers, and if necessary they rebuilt the house or renovated it, and placed upon the wall the memory of these things in their proper characters"); that is, they established the character which the year was to have and renewed their objects of worship and house- hold utensils — ceremonies whose original meaning can only have been that the beginning of the year was set at this time. In fact, the Zotzil of Chiapas, whose people were near kin to the Mayas, seem also to have begun the year with the month Chen, which the}^ called Tzun, that is, ''beginning" (see Pineda, quoted by Orozco y Berra, volume 2, page 142). I may remark by the way that, just as we find the New Year's feast of the Mexicans among the Mayas, so, too, the man- ner in which half a year later, in the month of July, the Mayas observed their real New Year by solemnly conducting the spirit of evil out of the village finds an analogy among the Mexicans in the broom festival (Ochpaniztli), observed in August. The decision of the Indian conference at Tlaltelolco — that the lirst day, Quauitleua, fell at the beginning of February — must therefore also be regarded as corresponding quite closely to the actual custom, because if it did so the various festivals were suited to the seasons in which they fell. The sixth feast, Etzalqualiztli, which refers to the setting in of the rainy season, fell on May 13. Don Cristobal del Castillo, who drew his information from Tetzcocan sources, and whom Gama follows, begins the year with the feast Tititl, which lay two twenties back, but sets the beginning of the year full 24 days earlier, so that by his reckoning the feast Etzalqualiztli, belonging to the opening of the rainy season, falls on the 29th of May. The interpreter of the Codex Vaticanus A in one place accepts the 15th, in another the 24th of Feb- ruary, as the beginning of the year. According to this Etzalqualiztli would fall on May 26 or June 4. Clavigero's opinion that the 26th of February and Duran's that the 1st of March was the beginning of the year do not differ very widely from what is indicated by the nature of the seasons. Etzalqualiztli, the setting in of the rainy season, would fall on the 6th or 9th of June. We should thus have for the latter event, specially important in the life of the civilized peoples of Mexico, a range of about the length of one of our months, which fully corresponds with the natural conditions. If, linally, Tlaxcaltec sources make the 3^ear begin with Atemoztli, a feast occurring some three twenties before Quauitleua, this gives us as the latest term which we find appointed for Quauitleua the last of December as the beginning of the year — a theory which again changes the beginning of the year to what was a significant time as well to the Mexicans as the Mayas: the middle of the dry season. But the very fact that the nemontemi, the final and supplementar}^ days of the year, were set now before Quauitleua, now before Tititl, now before Atemoztli, or elsewhere, as before Tlacaxipeualiztli, as according to the Guatemalan Cronica Fran- 24 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 ciscana of 1683, was usual among- the Cakchikels, proves that festivals were displaced among the Mexicans, that their years were actually too short, and that they were constantly falling into confusion in their calendar of feasts. But if among the Mexicans festivals were constantly displaced in consequence of their inability to express the real length of the year in their system of chronology, on the other hand the tonalamatl computa- tion offered a strong framework, which, elaborated by the expert hands of priests, left not a moment's doubt as to the space of time which divided a given day from another. At one point only is the uncer- tainty of Mexican chronology apparent here; that is in regard to the first day of their 3^ear and to the titles which were assigned to the different years, corresponding to their initial days. If, as I said above, it necessarily follows from the system of the tonalamatl and the acceptance of a year of 365 days that of the twenty da}^ signs onl}^ four fall on the opening days of the year, which four were each four sig-ns apart, one from the other (that is, there were four intermediate signs), and if we further find that the years were usually designated by four day signs standing four signs apart, it is then the most natural inference that it was from the initial davs of the year that these years themselves were named. But this does not seem, or at least not uni- versall}^ to have been the case. Among the Mexicans the years were designated hy the signs Acatl (reed), Tecpatl (ffint), Calli (house), Tochtli (rabbit); that is, XIll, XVIII, III, and VIII, of the twenty day signs. To these correspond exactl}^ the Chiapanec, Been, Chinax, Votan, Lambat, while in Yuca- tan the signs Kan, Muluc, Ix, Cauac — that is, lY, IX, XIV, and XIX of the day signs— were used for successive years. The four signs, Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, Tochtli, were registered upon the four arms of a cross with hooks, in the style shown in figure 2. By following a circle in the direction opposite to that in which the hands of a clock move we pass from 1 Acatl past 2 Tecpatl, 3 Calli, 4 Tochtli, to 5 Acatl, etc., until we come to 13 Tochtli. As this registration suggests, the years i*ecorded on one arm of the cross with hooks were alwa3^s referred to a particular quarter of the heavens; the Acatl years to the east, Tecpatl to the north, Calli to the west, and the Tochtli years to the south. Computation within the cycle began in the east with the Acatl years, not with 1 Acatl, but, singularly enough, with 2 Acatl, so that the cycle closed with 1 Tochtli. The present period of the world began, so the Mexicans believed, in the year 1 Tochtli. The earth was created in this period, or rather the heavens, which fell at the close of the last prehistoric period of the world, were again lifted up. Not until this was completed could fire be again produced and the first cycle of 62 years be thus begun. This is expressly stated in the Fuenleal codex of the Historia de los Mexicanos por sus Pinturas. seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 25 Therefore 2 Acatl is the opening year of the first and of all following C3^cles. As such it is also designated in all picture manuscripts of historical nature by the lire drill. The statement of the interpreter of the Codex Telleriano-Remensis, part 4, page 24, on which Orozco y Berra lays so nuich stress, that the beginning of the cycle was first changed from 1 Tochtli to 2 Acatl in the year 1 506, under Motecuhzoma, on account of the famine which regularly occurred in previous years, is merely an attempt to explain the remarka])le fact that the cy^cle begins with the numeral 2 in a euhemeristic way. But Clavigero^s assertion that the cycle began with 1 Tochtli is simply an error. It contradicts the accounts of ancient authorities and all tliat documents tell us. With what days did the 3^ears begin? Duran and Cristobal del Castillo say that the year began with Cipactli, the first of the twenty signs for the days. And if this is to be accepted as the initial da}^ of one year, then the others would begin with Miquiztli, Ozomatli, Cozca- quauhtli, VI, XI, and XVI of the signs for the days. This is Cla\ i- gero's theory. He begins the years Tochtli, Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, corresponding with Cipactli, Miquiztli, Ozomatli, Cozcaquauhtli. I, myself, formerly believed that the years Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, Tochtli were to be coupled with the d'dys Cipactli, Miquiztli, Ozomatli, and Cozcaquauhtli as initial days, relying upon page 12 of the Borgian codex which agrees with Codex Vaticanus B, page 28, where we see represented by five Tlaloc figures the five cardinal points and their significance in the life and housekeeping of men, and among the first four of them the signs for the four years coordinated in the above manner with the signs of the aforesaid four days. But I have recently become puzzled again, since the above-mentioned pages of the manu- scripts very readily admit of another explanation. For not only were the years of the cycle apportioned among the four cardinal points, but so also were the four divisions of the tonalamatl, beginning with 1 Cipactli. The initial da3^s of the four quarters were plainly designated in the Zapotec calendar— which, as we shall see, perhaps represents one of the most primitive forms of this chronologic system — as the Cocijo or pitao, that is, ''the holders of time", ''the rain gods", or "the great ones", "the gods". In these names we find, then, a direct reference to the Tlaloc figures, which we see depicted in the Borgian codex, page 12, and Codex. Vaticanus B, page 28, as representatives of the cardinal points. And the day signs set down under the latter signify those very initial days of the tonalamatl divisions and the initial years of the C3^cle divisions which were supposed to be coordinated with the cardinal points. The wisdom of the Mexican priest chroniclers spent itself in elabo- rating the tonalamatl from its arithmetico-theoretic and augural side. There is not — aside from a passage in the Maya manuscript, of which 26 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 I shall speak further on — a single place in the entire mass of picture manuscripts belonging- to the pre-Spanish time where the successive years are enumerated with their initial days. This fact alone should make us suspicious in regard to the assertions of Duran and Cristobal del Castillo. For Cipactli, the first day of the tonalamatl, and the following signs are generally used in the manuscripts somewhat as aie our numerals 1 to 20. Bishop Landa also states directly of the Maya calendar, that the first day of the year and the first day of the tonala- matl had absolutel}^ nothing to do with each other. If we take into consideration the confusion, which, as I have explained above, pre- vailed in Mexico in regard to the beginning of the year, we can not avoid the impression that the opening days of the year were also dis- placed in the course of time, and thus couid not always keep the same names. If we once admit this, then the fact that it became necessary to call the successive 3^ears by the names of the days Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, Tochtli, acquires increased meaning. We can not well refuse to assume that at the time when and in the phice where it first occurred to the learned that only four of the twenty signs for the da3^s fall upon the initial days of the 3^ears, it was just these very days, Acatl, Tec^patl, Calli, Tochtli, with which the year then and in that place began, or at least, that these days, for whatsoever reasons, then and in that place were chosen for the opening days of the year. I find an indirect proof that this was indeed the case in the fact that ancdent accounts from two remote and widely separated localities, from Meztitlan, on the boundaries of Huaxteca, and from Nicaragua, make the series of twenty da}^ signs begin with Acatl. In the Dresden manuscript the years do not begin with Kan, Muluc, Ix, Cauac, the fourth, ninth, fourteenth, and nineteenth day signs, with which, at a later period, to judge from Landa and the books of Chilan Balam, the Ma3^as began their years, but with Been, Ezanab, Akbal, and Lamat, that is, the thirteenth, eighteenth, third, and eighth signs, which answer to the Mexican Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, Tochtli. In a paper presented before the International Americanist Congress at Bei-lin E. Forstemann, to whom we owe so man}' discoveries, espe- cially in regard to the mathematics of the Dresden manuscript, furnished proof that the many high numbers which are to be found, particularly in the second part of the Dresden manuscript, take for granted that the day 4 Ahau (4 XX), the eighth of the month Cumku (the last of the eighteen annual festivals), is to be regarded as a zero mark, inasmuch as, if we count on from this day for the number of days which the figure stand- ing above gives us, we obtain a different date, which — again exactly indicated by numeral and sign and statement of what day of which month — is noted beside it. Now Mr Forstemann saw very plainly that this zero mark, 4 Ahau, 8 Cumku, with which the other dates in the manuscript, with a very few exceptions, agree, clearly can not be SEI.KRj THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 27 made to harmonize with Landa's theory of the })eginnino- of the year. He therefore says that 8 Cumku is to })e understood as the eve of a festival", the day which is followed b}^ the eighth day of the month Cumku. The ingeniousness of this explanation certainly satisfied Mr Forstemann less than an3^one. 1 hold that 8 Cumku can not well be anything else than the eighth day of the month Cumku. And if a da\' 4 Ahau (IXX) was the eighth day of the month Cumku, then the first day of that month must be a day 10 Been (10 XIII) and the year must also have begun with Been, the thirteenth day sign, the Mexican sign Acatl. According to this, therefore, the signs of the first days of the years were not the fourth, ninth, fourteenth, nineteenth day signs (Kan, Muluc, Ix, Cauac), ])ut the thirteenth, eighteenth, third, eighth day signs, Been, Ezanab, Akbal, Lamat, or in Mexican, Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, Tochtli. That this is actually the case in the Dresden maimscript is also confirmed elsewhere. Not unlike the Mexicans in their custom stated above, the Mayas also assigned the successive years of the cycle to the four cardinal points. The books of Chilan Balam, a copy of which, prepared by the late lamented Doctor Berendt, I had occasion to use in Doctor Brinton's library, unani- mously ascribe the Kan years to the east, the Muluc years to the north, the Ix years to the west, and the Cauac years to the south. To be sure, Landa contradicts this. Still the same relation follows from his assertions. For the Kan years, which he assigns to the south, were the 3^ears in the days preceding which, according to his statements, the spirit of evil dominating the Kan years was brought into the vil- lage from a southerly direction, and then borne out of the village on the eastern side, that is, in the direction probably significant of the new year. And so, too, with the other years: The Chac-uuayayab of the Muluc years is taken out toward the north, the Zac-uuayayab of thelx years toward the west, and the P^k-uuayayal) of the Cauac years toward the south." Now, what 3^ears and what cardinal points are connected in the manu- scripts? 'There is no lack of hieroglyphs for the four and the five cardi- nal points, respectively, in the manuscripts. We know distinctly that a to d in figure 1 represent the four cardinal points, and that e to (/ are probably variants of a hieroglyph for the fifth cardinal point, the direc- tion upward from below, or downward from above. It was, however, still doubtful how a to figure 1, are to be referred to the four cardinal points. Schultz-Sellack (Zeitschrif t f iir Ethnologic, volume 9, page 221, 1879) and Leon de Rosny were of the opinion that a to d, respectively, denote the east, north, west, and south. Cyrus Thomas, in his Study of the Manuscript Troano, exchanges a and c and asserts that the former represents the west, the latter the east. In his recent work, published in the Third Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, he reverses the entire order and states that a to d, figure 1, correspond respectively 28 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 to the west, south, east, and north. But the argument which leads him to this assertion is obviousl}^ incorrect. It is true that the Mexi- cans generally arranged the sequence of the cardinal points in the direction opposite to the course of the hands of a clock, as is shown in figure '2. But as for the double page 41 and 42 of the Cortes codex, on which Cvrus Thomas rests his assertion, the glyphs of the cardinal points a to d there inscribed within the quadrants do not refer, as t U V w Fig. 1. Symbols of the cardinal points, colors, etc. Professor Thomas states, to the dates written in the left-hand corner of the quadrants (1 Ix, 1 Cauac, 1 Kan, 1 Muluc), but to the whole series of days which are denoted in the said quadrants, partly by their glyphs, and partly by the dots connecting the glyphs. In the quadrant containing the cardinal point of figure 1, are recorded the days from 1 Imix (1 I) to 13 Chicchan (13 V), that is, the •whole first quarter of the tonalamatl, the days beginning at the innei left-hand corner and following one another over the outer left-hand seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 29 corner and the outer right-hand corner as far as the inner right-hand corner; and in the same manner in the quadrant following in the direction opposite to the course of the hands of a clock, in which the cardinal point figure 1, is written, are recorded the days which form the second quarter of the tonalamatl; and again in the third quadrant, which contains the glyph figure 1, is the third quarter; and in the last quadrant, with the glyph figure 1, the last quarter of the tonalamatl. Since we know that the four quarters of the tonalamatl, beginning with 1 I. 1 VI. 1 XI, and 1 XVI, were respec- Li zs t— To To' To To 1^ ^ 1 o go r r ? 1 F' 1 r Fig. 2. Mexican calendar wheel form. tively ascribed to the east, north, west, and south, this double page from the Cortes codex is the strongest proof that Schultz-Sellack and Leon de Rosny were right in referring the hieroglyphs a to d, figure 1, respectively to the east, north, west, and south. In a and figure 1, is contained, in their lower half, an element which is contained in the month name Yaxkin (k and Z, figure 1) and undoubt- edly denotes the sun (kin), the disk sending out rays of light to the four cardinal points. In k and I this element is combined with another, which also occurs in the glyph of the month name Yax 30 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 same figure), and which, as comparison with other glyphs shows, denotes "green tree" (yax). In a, figure 1, the element kin i>s combined with the glyph of the twentieth day sign, which is in Maya called Ahau. Ahau, abbreviated ah, means ''the lord", ''the king". The word is connected with a verb ah, which means "to rise up", ''to awake", "to rise"; ahal-ik, "the wind rises"; ahal-cab, "the world wakes" (the day breaks); ahi cab, "from the beginning of the world". This gh^ph should therefore be read ahal-kin, "the sun rises," and this is equivalent to likin, the true Maya expression for the cardinal point of the east. In c, figure 1, on the other hand, the element kin is combined with another, which serves as the glyph of the seventh da}^ sign, in Maya called Manik, which corresponds to the Mexican mazatl, "deer". The element represents a hand with the four fingers curved toward the thumb. I have already explained this in my essay on the Character of the Aztec and Maya manuscripts (Zeitschrift fur Ethnologic, volume 20, page 65), but at that time I was uncertain as to its true signifi- cance. It is sign language for "to eat". When we traveled in lluaxteca, a district inhabited in old times and down to the present da}^ by a nation whose language shows them to be nearly akin to the Mayas of Yucatan, the invitation to eat, Vamos a comer, was invari- ably accompanied by a gesture in which the hand, bent in the style of the glyph Manik, was repeatedly carried to the mouth. This symbol was taken as the glyph for Manik, "deer", because the deer was regarded as "meat" Kar f^oj^/r, "that which is eaten". In Maya "to bite", "to eat", and "to be bitten", "to be eaten", is chi. The glyph c would accordingly be read chikin, and this is well known to be the Ma^-a word for the cardinal point west. The other two glyphs of the cardinal points, h and figure 1, are not phoneticall}^ constructed. In d we have the same element that we have already seen in ^, X", and the glyphs Yax and Yaxkin, and which, as I stated, denote "tree". We see it here surrounded by figures which are to be explained as smoke or fire. Therefore d^ figure 1, must be the region of fire, the south. Glyph h shows us a head and a jaw, the two not infrequently combined as if the head were being drawn into the jaw {I and Z", figure 3). Occasionally an eye, looking toward the head, occurs as a variant of the jaw (see figure 3, in the manuscript Troano codex, page 24*^). Finally, the hieroglyph figure 3, occurs (manuscript Troano codex, page 20*c) for the hieroglyph ^, figure 1; instead of the head drawn into the jaw we have a head held or lifted up by an open hand. The symbolism is clear. It is the live devouring earth mouth, the underworld, which, as we know, was located by the Mexicans in the north. In Aztec the north is called mictlampa ("the direction of the realm of the dead"). Analysis of the hieroglyphs thus leads to the same result as that skler] THK MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 31 which our study of the Cortes codex, pages 41, 42, sugcrested, that the hieroglyphs a to c/, figure 1, are indeed to be coordinated in the way already stated by Schultz-Sellack — that is, that a to respectively, denote the east, north, west, and south. Here we do indeed encounter a difiiculty which must be overcome before we can with any confidence profit by the knowledge thus far acquired. Schellhas has already (Zeitschrif t f iir Ethnologic, volume 18, page 77) drawn attention to the hieroglyphic elements t to figure 1, which are coordinated with the cardinal points in such a way that, according to the cardinal point, they form the variable constituent of a hieroglyph otherwise similarly constituted. Thus, in the Dresden manuscript, pages 30J and 31^ and pages 29c and 30c, the hieroglyphs n to ^, figure 1, are invariably combined with one of the hieroglyphs of the four cardinal points. And so, too, on pages 30c and 31c we see the same elements of t to w (always changing with the cardinal points) forming part of another hieroglyph otherwise not clear. Finally, the same elements are (Dresden manuscript, pages 31Z» to 31^) added to the principal glyph of Chac itself and combined with the same cardinal points. I have already suggested in my earlier work (Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologic, volume 20, page 1) that these hieroglyphic elements chang- ing with the cardinal points are meant to denote colors. We know that the Mexicans, like the Mayas and many other American nations, ascribed certain colors to the cardinal points, and that the objects or beings whose various forms were supposed to reside at the different cardinal points were distinguished by the color appropriate to the cardinal point in question. Thus in Landa, in speaking of the xma kaba kin ceremonies, accord- ing to the 3'ear — that is, according to the respective cardinal point — a 3^ellow, red, white, and black Bacab, a yellow, red, white, and black Uuayayab, a yellow, red, white, and black Acantun is men- tioned. But if this be the case, then the element of 7^', figure 1, must denote the color ek, "black". For in both the above-mentioned passages of the Dresden manuscript the rain god (Chac) is repre- sented in black color below the glyph provided with this element (while he is left white elsewhere). The element v (same figure), on the contrary, is most probably to be described as expressing the color zac, "white", for it forms the characteristic element in the glyph of the month name Zac, li. The element u may be taken to express chac, "red", for it forms the characteristic element in the glyph of a goddess, m, a companion of Chac, who is represented in the Dresden codex, pages 67a and 74, in red color and with tiger claws. Finally, the glyph t (same figure), seems as if it must be intended for kan, "3^ellow". This is proved by the similarity of the element to the figures by which gold, the yellow metal, is represented in Mexican 32 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 glyphs; also by the fact that, in conjunction with the element ''tree", it is used to denote honey and honey wine {?i and figure 3), and that it appears vicariously for kin, "sun", and is sometimes replaced by the hieroglyphic expression for the latter. According to this, indeed, we should have the four colors, yellow, red, white, and black, in t to ?/;, figure 1, and in the same order of succession as they are given by Landa for the four cardinal points. But these elements, which I call kan, chac, zac, and ek, are not, in the above-mentioned passages, as we should suppose, assigned to the east, north, w^est, and south, but, in the same way as Landa — though, as ^ve must assume, incorrectly — refers the variously colored Bacabs and their years to the cardinal points, they are assigned to the south, east, north, and west. I must confess that this fact disturbed me for a long time, until it gradually became clear to me that in this instance other ideas were decisive in referring the rain god, Chac, to the cardinal points, and hence other colors were necessarily chosen to express that refer- ence than those chosen for the Bacabs prevailing in the different years. Wherever the Bacabs themselves and the different years and the cere- monies performed before the beginning thereof are represented in the Dresden manuscript, especially on the familiar pages 25 to 28, there the elements of figures t to ?/; are not coordinated with d,, a, J, but with ((^ c, d (figure 1) — that is, actually with the east, north, west, and south. This can not, indeed, be noted on all four pages, the upper parts of 25 and 27 being unfortunately too far destroyed. But we can still see that on all four pages in a certain place on the upper part there was a per- vading hierogl3^ph, which contained the elements of t to m as a varia- ble constituent part. The same is retained on two pages, 26 and 28 (see r and -s-, figure 1), and there we actually see that the elements of u and w — that is, as I assume, red (chac) and black (ek) — are allotted to the north and south. That yellow (kan, {) and white (zac, '?')'are also correspondingly arranged is, I think, as good as certain. And these assumptions are confirmed by corresponding passages in the Troano codex. There the various Chacs are represented, pages 30 and 29^, beginning with that of the west, c. And the elements ek, kan, chac, zac answer to the directions of c, d^ a, h. On pages 31 and 306?, on the contrary, the various Bacabs are represented, beginning with that of the east (chac and hobnil). And here, as comparison with the Cortes codex, pages 41 and 42, show the elements kan, ek, zac, chac correspond to the directions of d, c, 1) — that is, east, south, west, north. Thus, that which I think 1 have discovered in regard to color nomenclature agrees with the old Schultz-Sellack idea that a to d represent hiero- glyphically the cardinal points — east, north, west, south, or likin, xaman, chikin, nohol. Now if we turn with this, as 1 believe, certain knowledge to pages 25 to 28 of the Dresden manuscript, on which the various year's are rep- seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 33 resented and the ceremonies performed before the beo"inniii<>- of them, in the xma kaba kin, I have still another exception to make. There is an error in these pages. In the lowest row of hieroglyphs, the very one which contains the hieroglyphs of the various cardinal points, north and south, xaman and nohol, d and Z>, are transposed. It is o))vi- ous that this is an error. Nowhere else in this manuscript do we find the order of succession «, c7, c, 1). Only in the carelessly drawn Codex Troano-Cortes do we meet with a couple of inversions of the true order. 80 we find in Troano codex, page 36, where, however, there seems also to be an error, for the series goes on afterwards in the proper direction. And so, too, in Troano codex, pages 30 and 31, we have a reversal of the order, as the succession of the colors kan, ek, zac, and chac shows. But these are exceptions. As a general thing the order of succession of the years follows the correct order also in the Troano codex. If we make these corrections in pages 25 to 28 of the Dresden manuscript, we have on these pages, as is fit, beginning with the east, the years answering to the east, north, west, and south — that is, therefore, according to the books of Chilan-Balam, the Kan, Muluc, Ix, Cauac years. But we look in vain for the signs for these years on those pages. On the front of those pages, on the other hand, two successive day signs are repeated thirteen times, which can hardly be anything but the last day of the old and the first day of the new^ year. We have on page 25 Eb (XII) and Been (XIII); on page 26, Caban (XVII) and Ezanab (XVIII); on page 27, Ik (II) and Akbal (III), and on page 28, Manik (VII) and Lamat (VIII). It therefore follows, according to the Dresden manuscript, that the years corresponding to the east, north, west, and south — that is, the later Kan, Muluc, Ix, and Cauac years — must have begun with the days Been, Ezanab, Akbal, and Lamat; that is, with the Mexican characters Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, and Tochtli. This is precisely what we learn from the date ^ Ahau, 8 Cumku, and the other dates com- bined from figures, signs, and statements in regard to months. In one of ni}^ first works, in which I stated the result of my Maya studies (Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologic, volume 19, Verhandlungen, pages 22-1 to 231), I attempted to identify the deities represented on pages 25 to 28 of the Dresden manuscript with the deities mentioned by Landa in connection with the Xma kaba kin ceremonies. 1 think my inferences at that time were perfectly correct. But because I did not read the hieroglyphs of the cardinal points aright, and because I had no knowledge of the circumstance set forth above, namely, that the Kan, Muluc, Ix, and Cauac 3^ears begin with the da3^s Been, Ezanab, Akbal, and Lamat, I was forced to make the somewhat bold conjecture that the names given by Landa were probably to be applied to the fig- ures in the Dresden manuscript, but not in the order Kan, Muluc, Ix, and Cauac, as Landa reckoned the 3^ears, but in the order Ix, Cauac, Kan, and Muluc, as they appear in the Dresden manuscript. This 7238— No. 28—05 3 84 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 conjecture is now wholly superfluous. The Dresden manuscript does, indeed, reckon the years precisely as Landa does, that is, beginning with the east, but the years which Landa designates by the dominical letters, Kan, Muluc, Ix, Cauac, are here specified by the initial days Been, Ezanab, Akbal, and Lamat. The chief figure on the first page is a god with a remarkable branching nose, whose principal hieroglyph is a, figure 3, a hieroglyph which otherwise serves to designate the lightning animal, the heavenly dog darting from the clouds. Instead of the latter, (^(same figure), that is, the head of Cha(5, appears as the principal hierogl3q3h in the Dresden codex, page 3. It is therefore obvious that this god is a god of. rain and thunder. Landa mentions in the Kan year Bolon Zacab, a name which is not that they are said to be rich in rain. On the second page (26) of the Dresden manuscript the chief figure is a god who has the sign kin written on his eyebrow, and whose chief hieroglyph, J, figure 3, likewise contains the sign kin. This agrees with Landa's statement, who, in the Muluc years, mentions Kinchahau, the "Lord with the sun face". On the third page the old god is represented, whose chief hieroglyph is c, figure 3. This again agrees with Landa, who mentions the god Itzamna in the Ix years. And on the last page (28) of the Dresden manuscript a death god is designated by the hieroglyph the face with gaping jaws; elsewhere written also in the form of glyph A. This, too, agrees with Landa, who calls the Uac mi tun ahau of the Cauac years " Lord of six hells". I can not go into further details concerning these deities selerJ THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 35 here, and refer the reader to my work quoted above. The two glyphs, which I have given in the plate accompanying this work (/' and figure 3), are characteristic companion gl3'phs,/'of Kinchahau and (j of Itzamna. The former gives the idea of clouds or heaven, lightning, and fire; the latter may be translated as Ahtok, ^'Lord of the stone knife". Now, how are we to understand this difference l:)etween the Dresden manuscript and Landa's assertions in regard to the first day of the year? Are we to assume that Landa was mistaken in making the Kan, Muluc, Ix, and Cauac years begin also wuth the days Kan, Muluc, Ix, and Cauac? Or shall we assume that at some particular period later than that of the composition of the Dresden manuscript a correction was made, in consequence of which the first days of the 3^ears ascribed to the east, north, west, and south no longer fell upon the signs Been, Ezanab, Akbal, and Lamat, but on the signs Kan, Muluc, Ix, and Cauac? I incline to the latter view, and remark that according to this the Troano and Cortes codices, which are only the two halves of one and the same codex, would belong to the later period. For on pages 23 to 20 of the Troano codex, whose meaning corresponds with that of pages 25 to 28 of the Dresden manuscript, on the front of the pages, not the initial da3\s Been, Ezanab, Akbal, and Lamat, but likewise, thirteen times repeated, the da3^s Cauac, Kan, Muluc, and Ix are found. In spite of this variability of the beginning of the j^ear the Maya races obtained a fixed chronology by reckoning, not the years, but the da3^s, from a zero point. Thus the tonalamatl reckoning afforded a firm basis, which prevented any error. Among the Cakchikels the zero point was furnished b3^ a particu- lar historic event, the destruction of the seditious race of the Tukuchee, which occurred on the day 11 Ah (11 XIII). By counting from this zero vigesimally — that is, by 20x20 da3^s — they obtained periods which all began with the day Ah (XIII, or the Mexican Acatl), which successively took the numbers 11, 8, 5. 2, 12, 9, 6, 3, 13, 10, 7, -1, 1, and then again 11. Such a period was called a huna, and twenty such periods a may (see my communication in the Zeitschrift fiir Eth- nologic, volume 21, Verhandlungen, page 475). Among the Ma3^as the starting point w^as undoubtedly the zero point tl Ahau 8 Cumku pointed out in the Dresden manuscript by Forste- mann— that is, a da3^ which bore the numeral 4 and the sign Ahau (XX, or the Mexican Xochitl), and was the 8th of the month Cumku, the last of the eighteen months of the year. But from this zero point the reckoning was not consistently vigesimal, but, as also follows from the computation in the Dresden manuscript set forth by Forstemann, periods of 20x360 da3's. These periods, since their number is divis- ible by 20, had alwa3^s to take the same sign Ahau (XX, or the Mexi- 36 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 can Xochitl). But as the figure 13 only goes into 7,200 witli a remain- der of 11, the figure of the first day of the period had to be two less than that of the first day of the previous period. In a word, the initial days of the successive periods of 7,200 days are 4 Ahau, 2 Ahau, 13 Ahau, 11 Ahau, 9 Ahau, 7 Ahau, 5 Ahau, 3 Ahau, 1 Ahau, 12 Ahau, 10 Ahau, 8 Ahau, 6 Ahau, and then again 4 Ahau. Such a period was called katun. It is still an open question upon what circum- stances it depended that just such a period of 20 X 360 days was chosen. But, at any rate, this is the true length of the so-called ahau katun periods, whose computation is clearly stated in the Dresden manu- script, but whose meaning has been very much misunderstood even down to the present time. In later times, when the connection with old traditions, if it had not entirely disappeared, had 3^et been impaired in many ways, the katun was taken, not as 20 X 360 days, but as 20 years. And thence it became evident that the periods could not begin in the way indicated, with I Ahau, 2 Ahau, 13 Ahau, etc., for the number 13 goes into 7,300 with a remainder of 7. Hence the initial days of the successive periods of 20 3'ears (reckoning 365 days to a year) must by turns begin with 4 Ahau, 11 Ahau, 5 Ahau, etc. In order to meet this difficulty the theory was evolved that the katun consisted, not of 20 years, but of 24 years, for 24x365, or 8,760, is also divisible by 20, and the number 13 goes into it with a remainder of 11, as it does into the true katun, the period of 20x360 days. And hence arose the dispute, in which nuich ink and paper have been w'asted, as to whether the katun consisted of 20 or 24 years. As a fact, it contained neither 20 nor 24 years (the old chroniclers did not take years directly into their calculation), but it contained 20x360 days. Now that the relation of the tonalamatl to the other chronology has been made clear, I will once more turn back to the tonalamatl itself. In my work on the character of the Aztec and Maya manuscripts (Zeitschrift f iir Ethnologic, volume 10, page 1 et seq.) I tried to prove that even the apparently quite dissimilar and differently named 20 day signs of the Mayas could be brought into conformity with the linguistically and hieroglyphically distinct signs of the Mexicans. But I then overlooked one calendar, because it was not then acces- sible, or at least not intelligible, to me, namely, the Zapotec, which is recorded in the grammar of Father Juan de Cordova, which was — unfortunately^, as it seems, very incorrectly and inexactl}^ — 'republished a few 3^ ears ago hy Doctor Leon. I have alread3^ mentioned that the Zapotec calendar is of an extremely ancient t3^pe. This is shown on the one hand by the ancient form of the words, which are hardly explicable by the language spoken at present or that recorded soon after the Conquest; also by the fact that the relation of the signs to the thirteen figures has become to beler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 37 some extent incrusted upon the form of the words used to denote the days. We can therefore detach a prefix from all of the names of the word, which is very nearly the same for all the signs connected with the same number. There are a few exceptions, which were perhaps due to an oversight or an erroneous conception on the part of the deserving monk w^ho preserved this calendar for us or possibly are merely to be ascribed to the careless reprint. We have the following prefixes in the words combined with the various num])ers: 1 chaga, or tobi, the prefix quia, quie. 2 cato, or topa, the ])refix pe, pi, pela. 3 cayo, or chona, the prefix peo, peola. 4 taa, or tapa, the prefix cala. 5 caayo, or gaayo, the prefix pe, pela. 6 xopa, the prefix qua, quala. 7 caache, the prefix pilla. 8 xona, the prefix ne, iii, nela. 9 eaa, or gaa, tlie prefix pe, pi, pela. 10 chij, the ])refix pilla. 11 ('hijbitol)i, tlie prefix ne, ni, nela.« 12 chijbitopa, or chijbicato, the prefix pifia, pino, pinij. 13 chijfio, the prefix peee, pici, qiiici. Yet only a few of these various prefixes seem to contain any distinct meaning. Primarily the prefix quia, quie, which belongs to the signs connected with the number 1, which, as we know, took a special posi- tion, was regarded as the ruler of the whole following thirteen. Juan de Cordova says that these units of thirteen or their initial days were called cocij, tobi cocij, como decimos nosotros, un mes, un tiempo ("as we say, a month, a time"). But the four signs which preside over the first, sixth, eleventh, sixteenth 13 day periods, that is, the four divisions of the tonalamatl, were called cocijo, or pitao, that is, "the great". The}^ were regarded as gods and were honored with sacrifices and bloodletting. Indeed, we find in the dictionar}^, for instance, tiempo encogido, en que no se puede trabajar ("special time in which no man can work") — cocij cogaa; tiempo de mieses, frutas 6 de siego 6 de algo ("season of harvests, fruits, or grain") — cocij collapa, cocij layna, cocij; tiempo enfermo 6 de pestilencia ("sickly season, time of pestilence") — coo yoocho, piye yoocho, cocij yoocho. But the original meaning of cocij can hardly have been "time". The prefix co denotes a nomen agentis, and in a certain way corresponds to the Mexican prefix tla. Cocii means " when we have taken", hence something like the Mexican tlapoualli, and, like that, it denotes a unit of 20 days; cocii, "20 days in the past"— that is, 20 days ago to-day; huecii or cacii, "20 days in the future", or "in 20 days"; cacii-cacii, "every 20 •days". If, therefore, the Father be correct in his statement, the appli- cation of the word cocii to a unit of thirteen days can only have been a This is the most common prefix, although the exceptions liere are more frequent, and the confu- sion particularly great. 38 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 a transferred or an incorrect one. Cocijo, on the contrary, is in the dictionar}^ translated by dios de las lliivias ("god of the rains"), and by rayo; totia peni quij cocijo by sacrilicar hombre 6 nino por la pluvia ("to sacrifice a man or a child for rain"); tace cocijo, by caer rayo del cielo. In other words, cocijo is the rain god Tlaloc, who has his place here in the tonalamatl because the four divisions of the tonalamatl belong to the four cardinal points, and the rain god is at home in the four cardinal points and differs according to the respective cardinal point, as is plainly shown on the above-mentioned pages of the Borgian codex, page 12, and the Codex Vaticanus B, page 28. If we now inquire what the prefix quia, quie, might mean in speech, we find "to strike", "stone", "rain", "crime or punishment", "to color", "flower"; the first four, however, are to be distinguished from the latter by special pronunciations of the i. If we substitute for "rain" "thunderstorm"', Avhich is usually about the same thing in these regions, then the first four meanings are readily evolved, one from the other, and if we take this as the meaning of the prefix quia, quie, we must translate quia-chilla, for instance, as "the crocodile Tlaloc", the Tlaloc who bejirs the crocodile as his sign, oi- ce Cipactli (1 1). Of the other prefixes only the last two seem to have any special meaning, which perhaps proceeds from the special augural value of the numerals 12 and 18. Piici means "the omen ", usually, it is true, the evil omen. Pino might be a secondary form of chino, for p and ch frequently stand one for the other in Zapotec word forms. Chino, chijnno means "full", "luck", "blessing", "riches", "thirteen", "fifteen". But these are all meanings which can hardly be brought into relation w^ith the numeral 12, to which the prefix pino refers. The other prefixes seem to be only variations of the well-known prefixes pe, pi, CO, hua, ])y which people in action and living })eings are desig- nated. The s3dlable la is demonstrative. If we set aside these prefixes, changing with the numeral attached to them, we obtain the word chilla or chijlla for the first day sign. 1 find the three principal meanings for this in the dictionary to be: first, "bean dice", pichijlla, frisolillos 6 havas con que echan las suertes los sortilegos ("beans with which sorcerers tell fortunes"); then, "a mountain ridge '\ pichijlla, lechijlla, chijUatani, loma 6 cordillera de sierra; also, "the crocodile", peho pichijlla, pichijlla-peoo, peyoo, cocodrillo, lagarto grande de agua, ("crocodile, great water lizard") and "swordfish", pella-pichijlla-tao espadarte pescado; finally, chilla- tao ("the great chilla"), is also given as one of the names of the highest being. Here the meaning " crocodile" seems to me to be the original and suitable one. For the way in which the first day sign is drawn in Mexican and Zapotec picture writings, as «, figure 4, obviously indicates the head of the crocodile, with the upper jaw moving inde- pendently, opening upward, which is a characteristic feature of this SELER] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 39 creature. The interpretations of Sahagun and Duran for cipactli, " swordtish " and "snake's head are therefore to be rejected, although the former is certainl}^ contained in the Zapotec word. The Indians of the high valleys of Mexic^o, the informants of both those histo- rians, were not familiar with the original of the true cipactli, either from personal observation or through reliable traditions. The other meanings, ''mountain range", " range of peaks", and again, "sword- a b c d e f « _ y z aa bb Fig. 4. Day signs and related glyphs from the codices. fish", are easil}^ derivable from the first meaning " crocodile". But it is more difficult to find any transition to the meaning "lot beans". Yet one does, I think, exist. The tonalamatl beginning with cipactli was the epitome of all augural skill. It is not too bold to accept the theory that the name was therefore transferred also to the tool of the augurs, the bean, which the soothsayers employed in conjunction with the tonalamatl. Among the Mayas, the lot bean was called am. During the festival in the month Zip magicians and physicians had 40 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 this painted blue, that is, consecrated. Now, it does not seem to me improbable that the words imix, imox, by which the Mayas and the Tzental-Zotzil called the first day sign, should be connected with this word am. I should even like to trace the Mexican word amoxtli, "book", otherwise very hard to be explained etymologically, back to these Maya roots. The Maya hieroglyph Imix (/>, figure 4) is very frequently associated with the hieroglyph Kan, and we often see this group among the gifts offered to the gods, as at c. It may perhaps signify ''beans and corn". With the second day sign, not one, but two different words remain after the removal of the prefix — the two words quij and laa, which both, however, mean the same thing, not "wind", as we might suppose from the Mexican second day sign, Ehecatl, but "glow" or "fire". This is an exceptionally noteworthy fact, for it explains the part which we see the second day sign play in the Maya manuscript. In Maya and kindred languages the second day sign invariably bears the name Ik, properly speaking i'k, that is, "wind". But wherever it occurs in pictures or hieroglyphs it gives the idea of flame or fire. So it does in ^/, figure 4, from the Dresden codex, page 25, where we see it in the center of the flame flashing up from the fire vessel; in figure 4, where it is borne on a staff; and in the hieroglyph of the sun god, Z», figui'e 3, which is composed of the picture of the sun, an element which signifies "winged", the sign Been, which signifies the woven mat and the woven straw roof, and the sign Ik, which in this combi- nation can only signify the fire applied to the roof. In Cogolludo, the word Kakupacat, "fiery glance", is given as the name of a god of war and of ])attle, and it is said of him: Fingian que traia en las })atalhis una I'odela de f uego, con que se abroquelaba (" He was supposed to carry a wheel of fire in battle, with which he defended himself"). Now, in the Troano codex, page 24, and in the Dresden codex, page 69, the black Chac is represented with spear and shield, and the latter (/*, figure 4) has the sign Ik upon its surface. No doubt this is the fiery shield, and the black Chac is Kakupacat, related to Cit-chac-coh, in whose honor warriors danced the Avar dance (holcan okot) in the month Pax. This union of wind and fire, which thus presents itself in the Zapotec name and the Maya image of the second day sign, is also probably the best explanation of the dual nature which seems to belong to the wind god Quetzalcoatl, who now appears simplj^ as a wind god, and again seems to show the true characteristics of the old god of fire and light. In the third day sign, after removing the prefixe: that vary with the numeral attached, we obtain the forms guela, ela, and ala or laala. Here guela and ela are well-known, much-used words for "night"; queela or gueela, "night"; te-ela," by night"; te-chij te-ela, " by day and by night"; xilo-ela colo-ela, "midnight". The form ala or laala seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOaY 41 seeniH to have been no lon^'er in use when Juan de Cordova took up the language. We shall also find further on that the vowel a is preferred to the later e in the names of the day signs. In calling the third day sign by the name of the night, "the dark house of the earth", varying from the Aztec calli, "house", the Zapotec calendar agrees with that of the various f)ranches of the Maya family. In the fourth day sign we obtain, after removing the prehx, the forms gueche, quiche, ache, achi, ichi. The sign corresponds with the Mexican Cuetzpalin, ''lizard". Picture writings show us a lizard-like animal with a tail, usually painted blue, and translators state that the sign signifies "abundance of water". Now it is really hard to under- stand why the lizard, which is usually found on stones and walls heated by the sun, should be taken as the symbol of abundant water. The Zapotec word forms seem to solve this difficulty, for they are to be translated by "frog" or "toad". The dictionary gives peche, peeche, beeche: todo genero de rana 6 sapo. Here pe only occurs as a prefix, which we find in almost all animal names in the form pe or pi. And that eche is equivalent to the ache, achi, ichi of the calendar is proved by comparison with the fourteenth da}^ sign, where are found the same forms, gueche, ache, eche, used for the jaguar, which is described in the dictionary as peche-tao, "the great peche". But, just as in the first day sign the Zapotec word suggested to us a pos- sibility of harmonizing the apparently incongruous Mexican and Maya glyphs and their designations, so here in the fourth day sign this seems also to be the case. Peche in Zapotec means literally maize kernel, not the simple ripe kernel, but the kernel roasted and, in con- sequence of the roasting, popped. We know that these grains of corn, which the Mexicans called momochtli, played a great part in of}erings to the gods. It is even stated every time how many such grains of corn were used for the drink which was oflf'ered to the procession of par- ticipating priests and chieftains in Yucatan during the xma kaba kin ceremonies. The Maya name for the fourth day sign is Kan, which probably goes back to kan or kanan, cosa abundante 6 preciosa ("an abundant or precious thing"). I have given the most characteristic forms of the hieroglyph in c, ). And the death-bringing significance of the dog is also set forth in glyph in which we find the vertebral column of a skeleton, as also in /', the hieroglyph of the month Kan-kin, the yellow, that is, the scorching sun high in the zenith. The dog shares this role of lightning beast in the manuscripts with two other creatures. One represents a beast of prey, unspotted, with long tail, a rather long head, and the sign Akbal over the e3^e, which is denoted in the Dresden codex, page 36«, l)y the principal hieroglyph of the tiger and also by a g^^ph, w^hich is com- posed of the day sign Kan and the glyph kan, ''yellow", and therefore probably denotes the yellow beast. I think that it is meant for the lion or jaguar (coh), which is also, for instance, in Zapotec, described as "the yellow beast of prey" (peche-yache). The other creature has a head with a proboscislike, elongated snout, ^, and hoofs on its feet; it is gl3^phically described by this same head and also by glyph ti, which is composed of an ax, a feather, and the abbreviation of a head, or the sign uinal ("a whole man")^^ 1 take this creature to be tzimin, ("a tapir"). We know that Central American nations connected the tapir closely with the deities of the four cardinal points. We are told of the Itzaex at Peten that they worshiped an idol " de figura de cavallo (of the figure of a horse)", which ))ore the name Tzimin-Chac, Caballo del Trueno 6 Rayo ("horse of the thunder or lightning") and was regarded by them as the god of thunder and lightning. Nunez de la Vega says of the great god Votan at Chiapas: Que en Huehueta, que es pue])lo Soconusco, estuvo, y que alii puso dantas y un tesoro grande en una casalobrega, que fabrico a soplos. ("That he was at Huehueta, which is a village of Soconusco, and that there he placed tapirs and a great treasure in an obscure house which he erected in an instant.") Certainly, the conception of the tapirs supporting the heavens and the words for it have penetrated even into Mexico. The six tzitzimime ilhuicatzitzquique, angeles de aire sostenedores del cielo que eran, segun decian dioses de los aires que traian las lluvias, aguas, truenos, relampagos y rayos y habian de estar a la redonda de Uitzilo- pochtli ("angels of the air, upholders of the heavens; they were, as we are told, gods of the air, who brought the rain, waters, thunder, lightning, and sunbeams, and must have been in the neighborhood of Uitzilopochtli"), which Tezozomoc mentions, are nothing else but the plural forms of tzimin, "tapir", constructed according to the rules of the Mexican tongue. From it, indeed, inversely, a singular form, tzitzimitl, which is the title of a particular warrior's dress combined "Seler, Ueber die Bedeutung des Zahlzeiehens 20 in der Maya-Schrift (Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, V. 19, Verhandlungen, pp. 238, 239). 46 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 with a skull mask, is derived. And if the rain god Chae is distin- guished in the Maya manuscript b}^ a peculiar!}^ long nose, curving over the mouth (see the hieroglyph in figure 3, page 36), and if in the other form of the rain god, to which, as it seems, the name Bolon Zacal) belongs, the nose widens out and sends out shoots, I believe that the tapir, which was employed identically with Chac, the rain god, furnished the model for this also. The tapir is called in Zapotec peche-xolo, and the native hairless dog peco-xolo. Dog and tapir, then, the two animals darting from heaven, who carr}^ lightning and thunderbolts in their hands, are brought together here in the common designation xolo. This word Xolo itself is the familiar name of a demon, the demon Xolotl, who rules over the sixteenth week (Ce Cozcaquauhtli), and the seventeenth day sign (Olin), and who is represented directly as a dog (Codex Vatican us B, pages 4 and 77) or at least with the cropped ears of a dog (Borgian codex, page 50, and Codex Vaticanus B, page 33), and who is distinguished as the deity of air and of the four directions of the wind by QuetzalcoatFs breast ornament, and b}" the fact thiit the four colors, symbols of the four cardinal points, and the sign naui olin ("the four movements''), are represented close beside him. There is therefore no doubt that this demon is to be considered as equivalent to the beast darting from heaven of the Ma\ a manuscript. The spirit Xolotl is usu- ally described by translators as the '^god of abortions". He is actu- ally also depicted in the Borgian codex, page 27, as crooked-limbed and blear-eyed. And in Mexico all sorts of mongrel figures, which were regarded as abortions, were described by the word Xolotl. If we now return to the word tela, by which the tenth day sign is denoted in the Zapotec calendar, it appears that we can find no mean- ing for it if we simpl}^ employ the word "dog", corresponding to the Mexican itzcuintli, but that the word at once becomes intelligible if we think of the dog darting from heaven, as represented in the Maya manuscript. For tela is tee-lao, boca abajo, ''with the head down", hence answering to the- Mexican Tzontemoc. The contracted form tela occurs in Zapotec in various derivatives, such as ti-tela-nii, used of the kicking out behind of animals; tinnij-natela, "to hold perverse speech"; totela, "to shake the dice from the cup (with its mouth downward)"; quela-natela-lachi, "confusion (when everything is upside down and topsy-turvy in our minds)." For the eleventh day sign the Zapotec calendar, after removing the prefix, gives the form loo or (in 1 XI) goloo. This answers to the Mexican Ozomatli, "ape", for the vocabulary gives pillao, pilleo, pilloo gonna, mona animiil (gonna is only the feminine designation). I have shown in ni}^ former work that the other calendars, as well as the Maya glyphs of tliis day sign, agree with this meaning. For th^ twelfth day sign the Zapotec calendar gives the form pija. seler] THE MEXICAN CHR()NOL(X4Y 47 But when it is combined with the numeral 1, where we should expect to tind quia pija or (juiepija, (pii cuija is g-iven. It seems as if there must be some mistake here, and that we should read it quie pija or quie chija. Pii, chii means "to be turned '\ Thus pija coi'responds exactly to the name (Malinalli) which the day sign bears in the Mexican cal- endar. But the name and the delineation of this sign are different in the Maya calendar. The name is ee or eb — that is, "a row of teeth", "a row of peaks". It is translated in the (xuatemalan chronicle, as in the Mexican Malinalli, by escobilla ("brush"). This translation is undoubtedly correct. The escobilla is a broomlike or brushlike instru- ment, made of plant libers bound together, which is still very gener- ally used b}^ the Indian women to clean their clothes and comb their hair (in Zapotec peego). The brush is therefore the symbol of purifica- tion and the instrument of women. It is the attribute of the mighty goddess Teteoinnan, or Toci, the ancient earth goddess, in whose honor the "broom feast" (Ochpaniztli) — that is, the feast of purification, or atonement for sin — was celebrated in the middle of the summer. The Ma3'a hieroglyph for the twelfth da}" sign (see a figure 5) shows us the face of the ancient goddess, and behind it, as a distinguishing mark, the escobilla. For the thirteenth day sign we find the word fornjs ([uij, ij, and laa. Quij means "the reed", corresponding to the name Acatl, which this day sign bears in the Mexican calendar and Avith which the Guate- malan title ah seems to agree. The Maya word been is obscure; but I have proved in my former work that the glyph Been refers to the same idea of the reed or, perhaps more accurately, to the woven reed roof, the woven reed mat. I do not find the meaning "reed" given in the dictionar}^ for the word laa. As, however, in considering the second day sign (" wind", "fire") we found these same word forms, quij and laa, to be synon3^mous, it is probable that there was also a synon3^m laa for quij, "reed". Moreover, it is a remarkable coincidence that in the Maya text the glyphs of these two da}" signs, which have the same names in Zapotec, the gl3"phs Ik and Been, should most fre- quentl3" occur in company (see J, figure 3). For the fourteenth day sign, the Mexican Ocelotl, "tiger", the Zapotec calendar gives gueche, eche, ache, just as in the fourth da3^ sign. As there in the words peche, peeche, beeche, "frog" of the dictionary, we were able to prove an agreement Avith the Mexican name, so here the dictionary gives peche -tao (" the great beast"), tigre, animal feroz. I have shown in my earlier Avork that the Ma3'a glyph is also expressive of the tiger. The Cakchikel title, Yiz, that is in Ma3"a h-ez, "the magician", is to be regarded as explanator3' of the Ma3"a name for this da3" sign (Ix), to m3" idea one more link in the chain of reasoning in favor of the theor3" that the S3"stem of day signs 48 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 became known to the Mayas through the medium of the kindred races of Chiapas. For a Tzental-Zotzil x frequently corresponds to the Maya z. In the Zapotec calendar the fifteenth day sign had the form naa and, where it is combined with the numeral 1, quinnaa. The Mexican name is Quauhtli, eagle", which is easily reconciled with the Guatemalan tziquin, '^bird", but not so readih^ with the Maya word men and the Maya hieroglyph (v, figure 4). But here again the Zapotec name affords linguistic evidence of what I felt compelled to infer, in my earlier work, from the form of the hieroglyph. The Maya hiero- glyph, shows an aged, wrinkled face. And we see this hiero- glyph, lengthened out, decorated with pompons, applied in various ways pictorially and hieroglyphicall}^, among others in the hieroglyph which usually accompanies the chief hieroglyph of the eagle. I decided at that time that the Maya hierogl^^ph repre- sented the picture of the old earth mother, the universally adored goddess known as Tonantzin, "our mother", who goes about stuck over with the fine white downy feathers of the eagle, and who appears in the Vienna codex, under the name hieroglyph ce Quauhtli, or "eagle". Now the Zapotec name gives us the same, for naa, naa means "mother'', a word which usually appears only with the prefix xi of genitive significance, because names of relationship were never used without an indication of possession. The sixteenth da}^ sign is designated in the Mexican calendar by the picture of the vulture (Cozcaquauhtli). The Maya races of Guatemala designate it as ah-mak, and this word also seems to denote the vul- ture, who eats out eyes", '"who makes pitlike excavations". The Zapotec word is loo, or guilloo. This indeed could not mean the vulture, but a different bird, the raven (pelao, balloo). The vulture in Zapotec is pellaqui (pelahui, balai, baldai). Now it is not impossible that one and the same conception underlies both these titles. Lao, loo, means "eve", "face", "front", "outside". Laqui, lahui, lai, means "set into the very midst", "between", "common", "public". But at any rate, the iiieaning which lies at the bottom of the root of pellaqui, baldai, "vulture", also occurs in the root loo. We have, for instance, xi-loo-eela, co-loo-eela, "in the middle of the night", "midnight"; loo-thoo, the " middle of the body "breast", "trunk". Still a third bird is mentioned in the Mexican calendar, of the Cronica Franciscana of Guatemala, namely the tecolotl, "the night bird", "the owl". The idea of death forms a connecting link between the vulture feeding on corpses and the dark bird of night which is easily understood. So, too, in picture writings we often find the cozca- quauhtli and the owl used interchangeably. The Maya hieroglyph, as 1 have already stated in my earlier work, gives rise to very different conceptions. It shows us (see figure 4) a seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 49 fig-ure which is invariably used in the manuscripts on the jugs from which the intoxicating drinl^ mead foams (see figure page 36), and which seems to be nothing- but a somewhat conventionalized form of the yacametztli, the half-moon-shaped nose ornament of the pulque god, which is used on drinking vessels in Mexican picture writing." The upper part of the hieroglyph shows the stripes usually employed for snakes, and seems to indicate the snake, which is often drawn winding al)out the wine jug. The name Cib also suits this con- ception, for ci is the maguey plant and is also used to denote the pulque made from it, as well as all other intoxicating drinks. Cib might therefore be formed with the instrumental suffix and mean ''that which is used for making wine'\ either the honey or, perhaps more correctly, the narcotic root which was added to the fermented drink. The Mexicans called this addition patli, "medicine", from which the pulque god was known as Patecatl.''^ There is a connection between these conceptions and the Mexican name for the day sign (Cozaquauhtli, "vulture"), as I have already pointed out in my earlier work, arising from the conception of the vulture, "the bald- headed," as the symbol of age, for the enjoyment of pulque, the intox- icating drink, was in Mexico granted to old age only. It now seems as if the Zapotec name for this day sign also fitted into the framework of these conceptions, for loo, loo-paa, is the root, and may therefore correspond to the Mexican patli, the Maya cib, that is, the pulque seasoning. In German there is an undoubted etymologic connection between Wurzel (" root") and Wiirze ("seasoning"). So I believe that the double meaning of the Zapotec name has perhaps more to do with the divergent representation and designation of the sixteenth day sign, as it appears in the Mexican and Maya calendar, than the connection of ideas which links the conceptions of vulture, ])aldness, old age, and pulque. If I am not mistaken, a divergent representation of this day sign is also actually expressed in the Maya hieroglyph. For we occasionally find a variant of it (2/, figure 4) in which the distinguish- ing element is not the pulque symbol, but a feather, or perhaps the night bird itself, the owl (see hh^ figure 4, one of the glyphs of the owl). This would also answer to the above-mentioned Guatemalan name for this day sign. The forms in the books of Chilan Balam {2 and aa)^ also seem to indicate or reproduce a feather. The seventeenth day sign in the Zapotec calendar is xoo. This corresponds exactly with the Aztec name for it, Olin, "motion", for the Zapotec word xoo combines with the more general meaning "powerful", "strong", "forcible", the special one "earthquake": aSee Veroffentlichung des Koniglichen Museums fiir Volkerkunde in Berlin, v. 1, pp. 132,133, and figs. 61, and 62, p. 169. bin my article on "DasTonalamatlder Aubin'schen Sammlung" (Compte rendu du septi^me session du Congr^s international d'Americanistes, Berlin, 1888), I accepted the incorrect reading Pantecatl. All the deductions based on this reading are therefore faulty. 7238— No. 28—05 4 50 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 xoo, xixooni, temblor de tierra ("earthquake"); tixoo layoo, temblar la tierra ("for the earth to shake"); pitao-xoo, dios de los terremotos (" god of earthquakes"). And it is well known that in Mexican picture- writings on historical subjects, as those in Codex Telleriano-Remensis and Codex Vaticanus A, the sign Olin — usuall}^ to be sure, in connec- tion with the brown and black dotted stripes, which signify the earth or the tilled field — is generally used to denote a coming earthquake, as the verb olini is especially used of earthquakes: auh in tlalli olini (Olmos). But if this is the original meaning of olin, we shall likewise have to search for a similar first conception for the hieroglyph by which the seventeenth day sign is known in the Maya manuscript. And, in fact, the ver}^ name which the day sign bears in the calendars of the Maya races points to this fundamental conception. The Tzental-Zotzil word chic means "to shake". The Guatemalan word noh means "great", "powerful", answering to the original meaning of the Zapotec xoo. The Maya name caban means "that which is brought down", "that which is below", that is, "earth", "world". The root cab has a still more pregnant meaning: in Charencey's vocabulary it is translated as terrain volcanique, that is, "earthquake region". In a broader sense it is also used for "earth'", "world". And if the same root, cab, also means "excretion" and "honey", miel, colmena, ponzona de insecto, untuosidad de una planta o fruta, ("honey", "beehive", "venom insect", "juice of a plant or fruit"), then the intermediate idea is, it seems to me, that of dripping down. The forms of the hieroglyph Caban («, figure 5) are very nmch alike. But I did not recognize the real meaning in my earlier article. The hieroglyy^h contains an element which forms the characteristic; constit- uent of the glyph of the young goddess Chibirias, or Ixchebelyax, who, as I think I can prove, takes the name Zac Zuhuy, "the white virgin ", a name which we also recognize in Zac Ziui, the Bacab of the Ix year, mentioned by Landa. It is evident in the hieroglpyh of this goddess {h and c, same figure) that the element which forms the distinguishing constituents of the hieroglyph Caban is meant to represent a part of the dark tuft of hair, with the long, waving, whiplike strands which give the whole figure of the goddess, where she is drawn in full, so characteristic an appearance. According to this we should conceive of the hierogh^ph Caban merely as an abbreviation of the hieroglyph of this goddess, and thus recur to the same meaning which I have already derived from the Zapotec word xoo, namely, "the earth"; for Ixchebelyax, the young goddess, is onl}^ another form of the earth goddess, who occupies the same position in regard to the old earth mother Ixchel that Xochiquetzal does to Tonantzin among the Mexi- cans. I find a striking proof of the accurac}^ of this conception of the hieroglyph Caban in the fact that this hieroglyph appears homolo- seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 51 gously with the hieroglyphic men {v, figure 4), which, as I stated above, is the picture of the old earth goddess, the earth mother, Ixchel, or Tonantzin (compare the two forms g and A, figure 5, which are used for the bee flying down, in Troano codex, page 9^a). And, finally, this conception of the sign Caban also agrees very well with the part played by the hieroglyph Caban in the compound hiero- glyphs in the Maya manuscript; for this element forms an essential constituent in all hieroglyphs which symbolize the word "below" or V w X y z aa Fig. 5. Day signs and related glyphs from the Maya codices. "descent from above". Thus in the hieroglyph of the fifth cardinal point {e to (/, figure 1), which denotes the center; in the hieroglyph of the bee {e to A, figure 5), which represents an insect swooping down from above; in the hieroglyphs {I to figure 5) which illustrate pouring from a jug or wine skin; in the hieroglyph which denotes the felling of the tree; in the snake formed by the sign Caban, upon which, in the Dresden codex, page 30^/, the green Chac, the Chac of the fifth direc- tion, is descending. When, in my former article, I described this caban 52 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULlv. 28 snake, as well as which in the Dresden manuscript in several places serves as a seat or footstool for Chac, and the element Caban generally as the heavenly seat, I gave the wrong emphasis to descent from above instead of to descent. In fact, this figure, like figure 4, which serves in other parts of the Dresden manuscript as the seat of (]hac, should be defined as "the lower place", the "earth". Indeed, the face of the old earth goddess is clearly visible in figure 4, while the figure of the hieroglyph Caban, as I stated above, shows us the goddess's hair. I will also mention /, figure 5, which in the Troano codex, page accompanies the figure of the tobacco-smoking god of heaven. Accord- ing to a view still prevailing in Yucatan, the Balam, the gods of the four cardinal points, or the four winds, are great smokers, and shooting stars are merely the burning stumps of gigantic cigars which these beings fling down from heaven. And when it thunders and lightens, the Balam are striking fire to light their cigars.^' Glyph i gives us the element of the stone and the element of descent from on high. The popular belief just described explains therefore in a simple way these singular pictures and the hieroglj^phs which accompany them. In another place (Troano codex, page 26*/>) the smoker is described in the text by the hieroglyph k. This is either to be translated as " the noc- turnal " (see the hieroglj-ph Akbal) or as "the red", Chac. For I have found the element Akbal in various places (for instance, in the Cortes codex, page 206?) used as a substitute for figure 1, Chac, " red". The eighteenth day sign in the Zapotec calendar bears the name opa or gopa. This is undoubtedly the same word as copa, "cold", "the cold"; taca-copa, tipee-copa, "to be cold"; tix6pa-ya, "I am cold." This name agrees with the meaning of the sign in the Mexican calendar (Tecpatl, "flint") and with the pictures of the Maya hiero- glyphs (Ezanab), which also represent the stone which is struck, the tip of the flint; for the notions "stone", "tip", " cold" are merged, one into the other, in the conceptions and language of the Mexicans. Itztlacoliuhqui, the god of stone, is also the god of cold, of infatuation, and of sin. The Zapotec name for the nineteenth day sign is harder to interpret. After removing the prefixes, we have the forms ape, appe, aape, gappe. This is probably to be resolved into aa-pee or caa-pee, and this would signify "covered with clouds" or " cloud covering". Now, this does not answer directly to the Mexican name Quiauitl, " rain", but it does to the form of the Maya hieroglyph (/?, figure 5), which, as I have shown in my former work, contains an abbreviation of the head of the moan bird /, and figure 4), the mythical conception of the mu3^al, the "cloud covering of the heavens." The name also seems to correspond to the other Mexican names, for the sign in Guatemala was ayotl, " tortoise"; for the cloud was also expressed by the picture aBrinton, Folklore Journal, v. 1, seler] THE MP^XICAN CHRONOLOGY 53 of a flying tortoise. In Cortes" codex, page 17a^ we see its picture accompanied by the group of hieroglyphs of //, figure 5, which con- tains in its flrst part above the element of flying and below it the ele- ment Cauac. And elsewhere we see the tortoise, now in a stream of water, with the frog, coming down from above; again with open jaws hanging to the heavenly shield." But if the Zapotec name for the nineteenth day sign can only be placed among the names of the other calendars with a certain doubt attached to it, on the other hand the Zapotec language affords the onl}^ and direct clue to an explanation of the part which the hieroglyph Cauac plays in the Maya manuscript. We find on the one hand, it is true, terms which approach to the idea of clouds and rain. Thus there is the hieroglyph 6', the companion hieroglyph of figure 4, that is, the bird moan. So also in/*, figure 3 (page 36), is the companion hiero- glyph of the name Kinchahau, which besides Cauac also contains the element of fire and that of the ax, which would suggest the lightning' flashing from the clouds. But thq hieroglyph Cauac is chiefly used simply with the meaning "stone" or "weight". This is most strik- ingly shown in the animal traps which are represented in Troano codex, pages 9a and 22*^, where the stones laid upon the beams to weigh them down have the element of the hieroglyph Cauac written on them. But we must also accept this same explanation when we find the pyramidal substructure of the temple covered with the element of the sign Cauac. And if in Troano codex, page 15*«, the Chac felling a tree is confronted with the death god felling a tree which is covered with the element of the sign Cauac, it probably only means that a barren stone is substituted in the case of the death god for what is a living tree in the case of Chac. The many instances where the hieroglyph Cauac serves as a seat or foot- stool for the gods are probably to be interpreted sometimes as clouds, but in most cases undoubtedly as stone, homologous with the hiero- glyph Caban and the element tun ("stone") itself {x^ figure 5), both of which we so often find depicted as the seat and footstool of the gods. There is quite as little doubt that the element Cauac in the hieroglyph of w, which denotes the bearing of a burden on the back, is to be con- ceived of simply as the expression of "that which weighs down", "the burden". In the remarkable instances where we find the gods holding a board in their hands on which are the elements of the sign Cauac or where a board provided with a plaited handle is drawn in front of the gods, the surface being covered with the element Cauac, it seems to denote a sounding-board, for the hieroglyphs added seem to mean music. Finally, there are also direct resemblances between the element Cauac oThe tortoise plays a similar part among the northern Indians. Catlin learned from the Mandan that " there were four tortoises— one in the north, one in the east, one in the south, and one in the west. Each one of these rained ten days and the water covered the earth." (Manners and Customs of the North American Indians, v. 1, p. 181.) 54 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 and the element tun. Thus in the hieroglyph of the god of hunting, whose distinguishing characteristic usually is that he bears on his diadem an eye or the element tun, that is, a ''jewel". The hiero- glyph of this god is sometimes written in the form shown at t; some- times in that of u. And that the element substituted in a for the element Cauac is actually to be conceived of here as tun or "stone", "precious stone", follows, on the one hand, from its use as a precious stone in the head ornament (tun, "stone", "precious stone"), and, on the other hand, from its being the basis for the post on which Mam, the Uuaya3^ab demon, is set in the xma kaba kin (Dresden codex, page 25c). Now, it is surely quite safe to assume a connection of ideas between clouds, rain, and stone, for in those regions every rain is a thunderstorm. Nevertheless, it will be plain that an arm}^ of doubts was routed when I hit upon the fact in the course of my Zapotec studies that the ver}^ same word, that is, quia, quie, is used in Zapotec for "rain" and "stone". For the last day sign we tind in the Zapotec calendar the name lao or loo, and this means "eye", "face", "front." This again does not agree directly with the Mexican Xochitl, "flower", but with the form of the Ma3^a hieroglyph {y and 2), which undoubtedly represents a face. The name of the Maya sign Ahau, "leader", also agrees. There is also undoubtedl}^ a connection of ideas between "eye" and "flower". To be sure, I can not now actually prove it from the Zapotec tongue. But I showed the metamorphosis of the eye into the flower in the Zapotec figures which I des(^ri})ed and copied in Veroff'entlichungen aus dem Koniglichen Museum fiir Volkei-kunde, volume 1, parts 1 to 4. And indeed the Zapotec word for flower may explain some singular resemblances of the hieroglyph Ahau. In Zapotec, for instance, "flower" is quije, which is very much like the word quie, "rain", and ''stone". The i, as is stated in a gram- mar, was pronounced with stronger emphasis ("for this ij is empha- sized more than to signify the stone"). Now, it is indeed a striking fact that the element Ahau (Mexican xochitl, "flower") in some hieroglj^phs seems to be homologous with the element Cauac (Mexican quiauitl, "rain"). If this were a single instance, I should not lay much stress upon it. But as the above researches as to the meaning of the Zapotec da}^ signs have in almost ever}^ instance shown that the Zapotec names formed the connecting link for apparently irreconcil- al)le difi'erences in the Mexican and Maya names and designations, I believe that I may also add this coincidence to the rest. It is obvious from its situation and it is also historicall}^ proved that the countr}' of the Zapotecs was the region above all others in which an interchange was eff'ected of cultural influences which spread from the Mexican region to that of the Maya races and vice versa. But seler] THE MEXICAN CHRONOLOGY 55 the present researches force us to the conclusion that the Zapotec country was more than a region of interchange; that it was the land in which the Mexican calendar, a most important factor in our knowledge of the Mexican races, had its origin. Indeed, among no other races did the calendar and the determining of fate connected with it exert so powerful an influence over all the relations of life as among the Zapotecs. We can speak with greater confidence upon this point when more is known of that Maya race bordering on the Zapotecs, the Tzental-Zotzil of Chiapas. ANCIENT MEXICAN FEATHER ORNAMENTS BY 57 / ANCIENT MEXICAN FEATHER ORNAMENTS By Eduard Seler In the question raised by Mrs Nuttall as to whether the ancient Mexican feather ornament in the Imperial Museum of Natural History at Vienna, which came from the collection at the castle of Ambras, is to be ret^arded as a standard, such as prominent Mexican warriors wore strapped to their backs in battle and in dances, or rather as a headdress, I have not declared for one theory or another, and have taken part only in so far as I was justified in believing Mrs NuttalPs proofs to rest on mistaken premises. She maintains that the ornament in question should be considered as a headdress, and, indeed, only as the headdress of Uitzilopochtli, which at the same time was also worn b}^ the Mexi- can king. This view I am inclined to reject. As for the matter itself, Valentini has already pointed out in an article in the American Antiquarian that headdresses similar to the Vienna headdress are to be found here and there upon figures in the Maya sculptures. Mrs Nuttall subsequently brought forward the figure of a god from a picture manuscript which she was so fortunate as to dis- cover in the Biblioteca Nazionale at Florence (and which is an older and better copy of the codex attributed to Ixtlilxochitl than is in the Aubin-Goupil collection), a figure wearing a head ornament which is indeed strikingly like the Vienna ornament as it now exists with missing frontlet. But this is not the god Uitzilopochtli, as Mrs Nut- tall asserts and as 1 also credulously repeated, but Tezcatlipoca. I recently assured myself of this when I had an opportunity to examine the original in Florence. This figure is surrounded by impressions of a child's foot imprinted in the scattered meal, which announces the arrival of the young god Telpochtli Tezcatlipoca, the first of the gods returning home to their city. The god Tezcatlipoca is represented in exactly the same way in the Codex Vaticanus A, and there denotes the twelfth feast of the year, the feast Teotleco ("the god has arrived"). Finally, 1 have tried, in my second article, to make it seem probable that the quetzalapanecayotl ("quetzal-feather ornament of the people of the coast regions"), a Verhandlungen der Berliner Gesellschaft fiir Anthropologie, 1893, p. 44. 59 60 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOG? [bull. '28 which, together with xiuh-xayacatl, or coa-xayacacatl, the snake mask of turquoise mosaic, forms the most conspicuous piece of adornment of the god known as Quetzalcouatl in the legend cycle of Tollan,^ was a headdress similar to that worn by the god in the manuscript of the Biblioteca Nazionale. Being convinced of this, I could accept Mrs Nuttall's conjecture that the upper part of the hieroglyph apanecatl in the Boturini codex was intended to represent an apanecayotl. While I fully recognized that the interpretation offered by Mrs Nuttall was not unwarranted, I still believed that the other con- struction, given by von Hochstetter, which is based on an old oil painting in the Bilimec collection, was not to be set aside. For, six months before, during an inspection of the Aubin-Goupil collection, 1 had discovered the original of the Bilimec warrior in the figure of King Axayacatl, who advances to battle against the arrogant Moquiuix, king of Tlatelolco, with the banner bound upon his back. I could merely allude to this in my communication of that date. For during the hour which was allowed me to examine the Aubin-Goupil collection I had no time for even the hastiest sketch. Doctor Uhle, who under- took to defend Mrs Nuttall's views in a reply, was quite reluctant to accept this statement, brought forward without proof. Fortunately, I am now in a position to offer a photographic reproduction of the pages in question (Cozcatzin codex, pages 14 and 15), which is taken from E. Boban's published synopsis of the Aubin-Goupil collection. The very first glance shows us that the selfsame warrior in the self- same ornaments is represented here as in the Bilimec picture (compare figure 6 and figure 9), only the latter is not a mere copy of one of the figures in the Cozcatzin codex, but of kindred originals, and at any rate the same tradition guided the artist in both cases. a Both these pieces are ascribed to Quetzalcouatl of Tollan, not only in the passage from the Anales de Quauhtitlan, which I quoted in my former article, but also in the Aztec text of the twelfth book of the historical work of P. Sahagun. ¥ni. 0. Copy of figure in the Cozcatzin codex. SELER] ANCIENT MEXICAN FEATHER ORNAMENTS ()1 At the time when Axayacatl was king, that is, supreme war chief of the Mexicans, the kingdom passed through a severe crisis. After Itzcouatl freed the Mexicans fi'om the supremacy of Azcapotzalco and the elder Motecuhzoma had prepared the conditions for the later rapid extension of Mexican dominion by establishing the alliance of the three states and forcibly subjugating Chalca, the enemy arose against Axayacatl in his own house. Close by Tenochtitlan, on the same marsh island, was the sister city of Tlatelolco, whose inhabitants, although of another and an older race than the Tenochca, living accord- ing to laws of their own, had hitherto united their interests with those of the Mexicans and fought shoulder to shoulder with them — for instance, against Azcapotzalco. In the early years of Axayacatl's reign, discontent, which had probably long been smoldering, broke out. Histories give various insignificant provocations as the cause. Suffice it to say that Moquiuix, king of Tlatelolco, openly took up arms against Tenochtitlan. The danger was all the greater because the neighboring cities allied to the Tlatelolca, Azcapotzalco, Tenayocan, and Quauhtitlan, also turned their arms against the Tenochca. Here young Axayacatl seems to have decided the matter in favor of the Mexicans by his own military abilit}^ The Tlatelolca were forced back from street to street and finally surrounded in the great market place of Tlatelolco, near which the terraced pyramid of their god rose like a citadel. The warriors of the Tlatelolca took refuge upon its apex, and it was Axayacatl himself, as historians unanimously state, who, pressing forward, slew King Moquiuix and hurled him down the steps of the pyramid. It is this event which is portrayed in the accompanying cut (figure 6) from the Cozcatzin codex. On the left we see King Moquiuix, in eagle array and denoted by his name hieroglyph, escaping up the steps of the p3a'amid pursued by Axayacatl; on the right, the victorious Axayacatl on the pyramid and Moquiuix h^ing vanquished at the foot. I have pointed out in earlier works that it follows from history, as well as from picture manuscripts, that Mexican kings and commanders in chief in later times assumed in war the dress and attributes of the god Xipe, the red god of the Yopi, who was called Tlatlauhqui Tezcatl or Tlatlauhqui Tezcatlipoca, the god who was clad in a fiayed human skin. This follows from various passages in the Cronica Mexicana of Tezozomoc. It is confirmed by Sahagun, who mentions as first among the military equipments of kings the tlauhquecholtzontli ("crown made of the feathers of the roseate spoonbill"), which was worn together with the coztic teocuitlayo ueuetl ("the gilded timbrel"), the tlauhquecholeuatl ("the jacket of spoonbill feathers"), and the tzapocueitl ("the petticoat or apron of green feathers lapping over one another like tiles"), all parts of the dress of Xipe. And it is clearly demonstrated by a passage in the Codex Vaticanus A (page 128), 62 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 where we find, in the year ''9 Calli" or A. D. 1501, King Mote- cuhzoma the 3^ounger represented in the complete dress of Xipe as victor over Tohica {a, figure 7). This Xipe dress is expressly men- tioned in a passage of the Cronica Mexicana by Tezozomoc as the dress formerly worn by King Axayacatl. I copy the passage in full, because it is of interest in relation to our picture. It refers to an enterprise against Uexotzinco, lying on the other side of the mountains and hostile to the Mexican confederation, in the reign of Motecuh- zoma the younger. Tlacauepan, the younger brother of the king, comes to Motecuhzoma and says: ''Lord, I believe that my eyes to- day behold you for the last time, for I am minded to put myself at the head of the troops and make my way through or die in the attempt." To this the king replies: "If such be thy will, then take this armor, which once belonged to King Axayacatl, the golden device teocuitla- tontec with the tlauhquechol bird upon it and the broad wooden sword a b Fig. 7. The god Xipe's dress and shield. with broad obsidian blades " (Pues que asi lo quereis, tomad estas armas que fueron del rey Axayacatl, una divisa de oro llamado teocuitla ton- tec con una ave en cima de el tlauhquechol y un espadarte ancho maac cuahuitl de ancha navaja fuerte). ^ Now it is indeed this Xipe armor in which we see King Axayacatl represented here in the cut from the Cozcatzin codex, as well as in the Bilimec picture. This is most plainly apparent in the human skin, the hands of which hang down over the king's wrists, the feet forming a sort of cuff over the ankles. So also the wholly un-Mexican feather skirt, almost like a theatric costume, which surrounds the hips of the Bilimec warrior, the tzapocueitl, is a part of the Xipe dress. This Xipe petticoat is made of feathers, running into points and overlapping each other like tiles. Likewise the tiger-skin scabbard with which the obsi- dian sword is provided in both pictures points to Xipe. In other par- ticulars the dress differs in no small measure from that of representa- a Tezozomoc, Cronica Mexicana, chap. 91. seler] ANCIENT MEXICAN FP:ATHP:R ORNAMENTS 63 tions of this deity hitherto known. The god usually wears on his head the yopitzontli, a pointed crown made of the rose-colored feathers of the spoonbill, with fluttering ribbons, forked like a swallow's tail. Axayacatl, however, is usually represented in the Cozcatzin codex with the xiuhuitzontli, the turquoise mosaic headband of Mexican kings, and the Bilimec warrior wears the quetzallalpiloni, the fillet with quet- zal-feather tassels. The plume which in both figures of Axayacatl (figure 6) rises behind the shield is likewise nothing else than an essen- tial part of the royal Mexic;an dress. It belongs, as a tuft, to the machoncotl, the shell bracelet which the king wore on his upper arm (compare the picture in the atlas of Duran). Yellow or Green. Blue. Red. brown. 1 2 3 4 5 Ilhuitl, feast. Chalohiuitl, Xiuitl, Tezcatl, mirror, emerald. turquoise. a h c Fig. 8. Disks from Mexican codices. Xipe's shield is the tlauhteuilacachiuhqui, a round shield covered with the rose-colored feathers of the spoonbill, showing concentric circles of darker tint on its surface. It is not infrequently bisected vertically, in which case one half is divided by an oblique line into a larger lower and a smaller upper panel. The former has a tiger- skin design, the latter the figure of an emerald in a blue field, or one trav- ersed by wavy lines (see ^, figure 7). I formerly explained the emerald as a mirror. This is not quite correct, although in the drawing of both (mirror and emerald) the same fundamental principle of the glittering disk throwing rays in all (four) directions is expressed. See figure 8, 64 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 where 1, 2, 3, and 4 are taken from the manuscripts, and in fact from hieroglyphs whose phonetic v^ahie is known, while 5, which occurs on a beautiful clay vessel found in the vicinity of Tlaxcala, with tiger and snake heads, a bundle of spears, and a feather ball, is perhaps only meant to represent the fiery luminous disk in general. The emerald in a watery held is to be read chalchiuh-atl. This may mean, in general, the ''precious fluid"; but it is more probably the same as chalchiuh-uitz-atl, the ''precious water flowing in penance" — that is, the sacrificial blood, the blood. Indeed, upon the beautiful feather mantle belonging to the Uhde collection in the Royal Museum of Eth- nology we see the emerald above, on a bright green field, and below it a stream of ])lood with a skull on its surface. These characteristic symbols, which are seen on Xipe's shield, on the Ohimalli stone from Cuernavaca figure 7), and also, although only indicated, on the shield borne by Motecuhzoma dressed as Xipe (*2, figure 7), are wholly wanting in the Axayacatl disguised as Xipe of the Cozcatzin codex and in the Bilimec warrior. In both an arm is painted on the surface of the shield. This is not very conunon as a shield emblem. And the agreement upon this point, in conjunction with the identity of the devices on the back, is a striking proof in favor of the theory that the painter of the Bilimec picture and the artist of the Cozcatzin codex had the same original or, at least, the same tradition in mind. In the Sahagun manuscript of the Academia de la Historia a shield with a drawing of a hand under the name macpallo chimalli is repre- sented among the shields of chiefs and w^arriors of lower rank. But this name does not explain the meaning of the emblem. On the other hand, I find the shield with the hand on a beautifully drawn colored page in the Aubin-Goupil collection, which the publisher, Eugene Boban, describes as "worship of Tonatiuh (the sun), a document relating to the theogony and astronomy of the ancient Mexicans", and which, as he explains, perhaps represents looking up at an eclipse of the sun.^ This cut reminds us, by the style of painting, of the Vienna manuscript, and originated somewhere near the Olmeca Uixtotin Mixteca. The paintings are done on a piece of leather, which is covered with a kind of white stucco, such as we find in the Mixtec manuscripts of the Philipp fl. Becker and Dorenberg collections. The sheet is a repre- sentation of the tonalamatl in five, instead of four, directions. The tonalamatl divisions in question are not, strange to say, desig- nated by the initial days, but by two dates, which, as it seems, repre- sent the name hieroglyphs of the divinities which adorn this division, a A copy, and that a very bad one, of this was made by Leon y Gama, in which the middle part is restored, doubtless incorrectly, as may be clearly seen in several preserved portions. This copy was reproduced by Brantz Mayer (" Mexico as it was", etc.. New York, 1844) as the upper side of a buried stone found in Mexico, which was said to have served for the sacrificio gladiatorio. This copy is also given by Chavero in "Mexico d trav6s de los siglos", v. 1, as " Piedra policroma del sa- crificio gladiatorio". SELER] ANCIENT MEXICAN FEATHER ORNAMENTS 65 one of which is combined with the numeral 1 and the other with the numeral 5. The five dates with the numeral 1 and the five with the numeral 5 are just 51 days apart. And these five times 51 inter- mediate days are marked on the sheet by small circles in the circum- ference of the five divisions. Here we find a male and a female deity placed opposite to each other in the first (upper right) division, which is shown to belong to the region of the east by the drawing of the heavens with the image of the sun upon it and, moreover, by a rising c d Fig. 9. Mexican shields. sun (J, figure 8). Beside the latter stands ce Mazatl ("one deer"), as the name hieroglyph of the day. Beside the former (c, figure 8) as name hieroglyph of the day is macuilli Cuetzpalin ("five lizard"). The former god, whom I must take, for various reasons, to be the same as Xolotl in the Borgian codex, page 29 {a, figure 9), wears on his left arm a shield, which has a hand as its emblem, and the ends of his loin cloth are also painted with large black hands. Xolotl is a figure which orig- inated in southern regions, and may possibly represent fire rushing down from heaven or light flaming up' in the heavens. In the manuscripts 7238— No. 28—05 5 66 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 the setting sun, devoured by the earth, is opposed to him, similarly as the sun god is opposed to the death god. He may perhaps be described as a sun god of southern tribes (Zapotecs?). In the Mexican legend he appears as the representative of human sacrifice and as the god of monstrosities, perhaps identical with Nauauatzin, the "poor leper", who leaps into the flaming fire, sacrificing himself, in order that he may rise again as the sun in the firmament. The Xolotl head (quaxolotl) is therefore one of the most prominent warrior devices." Xolotl is doubtless a kindred figure to the god Xipe, and his home should be sought in the immediate vicinity of Xipe's home. The shield with the human arm as its emblem, which is worn by Axayacatl of the Cozcat- zin codex and b}^ the Bilimec warrior, is therefore hardl}^ to be regarded as an irregularity or as anything contradictory to the former costume. I now come to the device on the back, the remarkable standard, which von Hochstetter has used to interpret the Viennese ornament. For the sake of clearness I have drawn it once more from the Cozcatzin codex as figure 9, and contrasted it with the Bilimec warrior, d. Here, first of all, we should consider the framework, from which the standard apparently rises. It is obvious that it is not a house, as von Hochstetter and Mrs Nuttall assumed, and as Doctor Uhle finally "proved". We grant Doctor Uhle, to be sure, that the "dark distinguishable door and window openings" in the small Bilimec picture might lead him astra3^ In other respects the frame on the Bilimec warrior resembles a Mexican house as little as possible. On the contrary, that the object in question is a genuine framework carried on the back is clearly shown by the straps crossing over the breast of the figures in the Cozcatzin codex. But what kind of a framework can it be? Of course, it has nothing to do with the ladderlike carrying frame (cacaxtli), to which devices for the back are fastened elsewhere. I hesitate between two theories. The most natural conjecture would be to consider it only an ill-drawn ueuetl, a drum, such as King Nezaualcoyotl wears in h.^ a See Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologic, 1891, v. 23, p. 127. & Singular conflicts have arisen in regard to this portrait. It belongs, with three others, to a manu- script which is ascribed to the historian Don Fernando Alva de Ixtlilxochitl, a decendant of Tetz- cocanic kings; later it doubtless came into the hands of the learned Jesuit Don Carlos de Sigiienza y Gongora with all Ixtlilxochitl's possessions, and now forms a part of the Aubin-Goupil collection. At the time that it was in Sigiienza's hands, the Neapolitan traveler, Gemelli Carreri, visited Mexico and copied these four portraits, with other parts of the manuscripts, to use in the account of his travels. These four portions represent, as the legends accompanying them state, the Tetzcocanic kings Nezaualcoyotl and Nezaualpilli and two Tetzcocanic nobles (tribal chiefs ?), named Tocuepotzin and Quauhtlatzocuilotzin. But Gemelli Carreri classed these with a fifth portrait, which, according to Boturini, also represents King Nezaualpilli, and gave them the names of the Mexican kings Tizoc, Axayacatl, Auitzotl, Motecuhzoma, and Quauhtemoc. But it happened that in the first Neapolitan edi- tion of his "Giro del mundo " (Naples, 1699-1701), the original, correct name (Nezaualcoyotl) was left attached to the second figure. In later editions (Venice, 1719; Paris, 1719) the list of Mexican kings is complete. Kingsborough's five portraits are reproduced from the first Neapolitan edition, and I owe it to this circumstance that I was enabled to give King Nezaualcoyotl (6, where Chu stands for Maya Ku; and also in a specimen of the language transmitted to us in Vil- lagutierre, V. 3. chap. 2, Chamay tzam bucana xaguil Jesu Christo tut Santa Cruz umenel ca tanal, muri6,estendido en su cara de este palo que se 11am la Santa Cruz Nuestra Senor J. C. per nuestros pecados. fi Petermann's Geographische Mittheilungen, 1893, p. 6. eThe word Chorti itself only means "the language of the Chols", as the 1 of the Choi becomes r in Chorti. 7238— No. 28—05 6 82 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 goddess)''; and that also the only place which Landa mentions on the Lagima de Terminos, Tixchel, ''to the aged goddess", seems to have been a place for the worship of a female deity. Copan, Quirigua, and Palenque lie beyond the limits of the present treatise. Their prosperity was evidently temporary, caused by cer- tain trade combinations, and for a time by the resultant conditions of accumulated wealth and power. It had doubtless already passed away when Cortes entered this region. The intermediate territory was prob- abh^ alw^a^^s on a lower plane of governmental, social, and material development, although in pre-Spanish times it was never as low as it afterward became on account of the entire cessation of traffic and the subversion of all existing conditions in the surrounding regions. As the above statements show, we had, then, in ancient times two nations existing side by side, distinct, though closely related one to the other. Of the two the Mayas have preserved their nationality to the present day, while the other, the Chols, appear to have been absorbed, partly by the former and partly and chiefly by the neighboring Qu'ekchi. " Here, as in other regions, notwithstanding original diffei'ences of race, sim- ilar conditions of environment and extensive nuitual intercourse have produced a fairly uniform picture of civilization. This fact is at once seen ])y comparing the descriptions of Choi settlements in the north of Cahabon, given by the old Dominican monks, with that which Doc- tor Sapper gives of the Lacandons on the lower bank of the Kio de la Pasion. But it is also shown in several other details. At the con- quest of the rock city in the Laguna del Lacandon, as the chronicler expressl}^ mentions, no idols whatever were found, for the Lacandons worshiped the sun only (el cuerpo solar), and brought their offerings and sacrifices to the sim itself and not to any representations of it, differing in this way very distinctly from the Itzaex and other tribes of those mountains, who had countless idols, statues, and images of metal, stone, and wood, with many superstitious customs and diabolical ceremonies. * The same statement is made in another place concerning the Acalans and Lacandons. Similarly, the Dominican monks reported that the}^ had found no idols at all, either of stone or any other material, among the Chols in the north of Cahabon. Sacrifices of black wax and other inflammable material were made, and chickens and other birds were occasionally sacrificed, as well as blood, which the Indians drew from themselves by piercing their tongues, their ears, their temples, or the muscles of their arms and legs. But the Indians said that they made these sacrifices to the woods and the high mountains, the dangerous fords of the rivers, the road crossings, and the lakelike expansions of the rivers. In fact, the fathers found a place of sacrifice on the summit "Sapper, in Petermann's Geographische Mittheilungen, 1893, p. 8. ft Villagutierre y Sotomayor, v. 1, chap. 2. seler] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 83 of the mountain over which they had to pass on their return journey, where a fire was evidentl}^ kept hurning, fed by the wax and copal offerings of passers-by. There were, besides, places of worship in the villages, consisting onh^ of a round structure or (in the temple or meetinghouse) of a couple of stones upon which the wax candles and the copal were burned/' In the ermita of the Lacandons Doctor Sapper likewise found no idols whatev^er, but only a low table upon which wax candles appeared to have been l)urned'' and the singular sacrificial vessels in which wax, copal, etc., were offered. Peculiar clay vessels were found some time ago in this extensive region, which has lately been made more accessible by the felling of timber along the Usumacinta and the Rio de la Pasion. These vessels are distinguished by a face mask of a rather stereotyped form, which is placed on the rim. In the Guatemalan exhibit in Madrid there was a series of such vessels displayed, and their origin was given as from Usumacinta. The Royal Museum of Ethnology received from Consul- General Sarg two such vessels with a similar label, one of which is represented by ^, figure 13. An exactly similar vessel is found in the museum at Copenhagen, said to have come from Peten (^, figure 14). No such vessels are known to come from other parts of Guatemala. The museum in Copenhagen possesses two similar vessels of somewhat varying but probabl}' related forms {a and figure 14), which bear the general label ''from Tabasco '\ Charnay found vessels like r/, Z*, and c\ figure 13, in great numbers in the chief temple of Menche Tinamit, near the idol and in almost every room.^ He copies two of them, and since the face mask of one is distinguished from the other by a very promi- nent nose he supposes that these two types represent, perhaps, two different races. Charnay considered these vessels to be prehistoric. We have to thank Doctor Sapper for the knowledge that the Lacan- dons still make such vessels to-day and bring wax and copal to their gods in them. Doctor Sapper saw these vessels in the great ermita of the settlement of Izan, and he collected fragments of them in the ruins of Menche Tinamit, "where the Lacandons were accustomed to meet once a year to celebrate their festivals by balche feasts and pecul- iar ceremonies, and to offer sacrifices to their gods in various buildings, especially in a three-storied building distinguished by beautiful reliefs and a large sitting stone idoF'.'^ I have had some of the fragments which were collected by Doctor Sapper copied in c to f\ figure 13, while a shows a specimen which was given to the Royal Museum from the Ecuadorian exhibit at the Colum- bian Exposition in Chicago, and which is evidently of similar origin. In the latter, as well as in the different fragments sent in by Sapper, thick masses of a waxy or resinous substance were found. On the a Remesal, v. 2, chap. 19. fcAusland, 1891, p. 893. f Les Anciennes Villes du Nouveau Monde, p. 384. dAusland, 1891, pp. 893-894. 84 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 outside, as it seems, all the pieces were oripcinally smeared over with a white earth, which usually nearly covered even the prominent details of the face mask. Shapes like those of the vessels represented here were naturally not d € f Fig. 13. Bowls from Guatemala. an original invention. One can imagine that they originated in ves- sels like a, figure 14, and that the latter shape arose from the need of distinguishing the back from the front. But one can also consider them as .survivals of whole-figure vessels, which seems to me more seler] ANTIQCJITIES OF GUATEMALA 85 probable. ^The inclined position which was o-iven to the face masks in the vessels of the Lacandons proves that the original shape can not have been an erect figure like those of the Zapotec figure vessels and the vessels of Ranchito de las Animas, The}^ are, it would seem, more like the vessels represented in figure 23, and a, figure 24:, below — that is, animal figures whose bodies form the hollow of the vessel. The human face which our vessels show might have originated as a substitute for the animal head. It seems more probable to me that the human face held in the open jaws of the animal on the vessel in fig- ure 23, and similar ones, as well as in numerous small cla}^ figures of Yucatan, in the stone monuments of Menche Tinamit, and else- where, has finally become predominant. This would best explain to me the projecting band by which the face mask of our Lacandon vessels is bordered above the forehead, which is wanting only in the mask of figure 13.^' This, then, would represent what remains of the animal jaw, and the erect, comblike object above it the relic of a a h c Fig. 14. Pottery vessels from Guatemala. tuft of feathers, which rises in most of these figures above the crown or the nostrils. The vessel shown in 6, figure 13, which, instead of the band above the forehead and the comblike, erect object, shows only a notched edge of the forehead, appears to represent the last stage of this development. 1 need not especially dwell upon the fact that the face masks contain only things which have long since gone out of use, which the makers of these vessels no longer had before their eyes, and which they merely repeated in stereotyped fashion. Neither the ear pegs, nor the knob- like objects resting on the cheeks (cheek pegs?), nor the knob, which is difiicult to explain, placed above the root of the nose, nor the deep cuts which outline the upper lip in figure 13, are used to-day among the Lacandons. Like the Lacandons themselves, these vessels, fossil- ized, as it were, represent the remains of a long-vanished epoch of civilization. The territories of the Chols and the Lacandons would to-day adjoin, on the south, the lands of the Qu'ekchi and their kin, the Pokonchi. a In a, fig. 13, the whole of the part referred to is broken ofiE. 86 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 These are the cultivated regions of the Vera Paz, open to Christian civilization and populated to this day to some extent. Here we find in the west, in the valley of the Chixoy, the ruins of Salinas de los Nueve Cerros and those of Chama. Doctor Sapper is inclined to ascribe both these to the Chols, without of course expressing more than a supposi- tion on this question. From the former place, where, according to Doctor Sapper's state- ment, a pretty sculpture, with some hieroglyphs, was found in a mound having well-preserved burial chambers, the Sapper collection contains two grinding slabs, two stone rings, a potter}^ vessel, and three pottery plates. The grinding slabs are of natural gneiss or mica schist of slight thickness (maximum, 3 cm.). The larger of the two has a rubbing sur- face of 52 by 35 cm. Of the two stone rings, the inner diameter of the c d e / Fig. l.i Pottery vessels and other articles from a Guatemalan mound. larger is from 4 to 5 cm., and the ring is 5^ cm. broad and 5 cm. thick; the other has an inner diameter of 2^ to 3i cm. ; the breadth of the ring is 3 cm., and the thickness somewhat over 3 cm. The larger one is smooth on the upper and lower surfaces and rough on the circumfer- ence. Both were perhaps used in a game resembling the chunky game of the Indians of the southern United States. The pottery vessel (a, figure 15) has a height of 15 cm., and the diameter at the mouth is 13 cm. It was well baked and carefully smoothed, and then received a red coating, upon which was traced a network of black lines; but the coating is rubbed off in many places. The plates (J, figure 15) have a diameter of 22 to 25 cm. and a height of about 6 cm. They are also of well-baked clay, rough on the outside and furnished with a light-red coating on the inside. sei.ek] ANTTQUITTES OK (lUATEMALA 87 Farther up in the vaiiey of the Chixoj, where the Salba empties on the right, lie the ruins of Chama, where the excavations of Mr Die- seldorff have jdelded such tine results. According- to the information which he has given about them in the Zeitschrift fiir Kthnologie, there were on the left, as well as on the right, bank of the Salba several plazas (courts or squares inclosed by walls), above which rise artificial mounds of the familiar truncated pyramidal form. In the pyramid on the north side of the plaza, distinguished !)y him as the "lower" one, which, if I understand rightly, is on the left ])ank of the Salba, he found, among a layer of potsherds nearly two feet in thickness, a dark resinous mass in which were embedded ditferent specimens of stone, small polyhedric slabs of iron pyrites, and disks of a sort of slate. The small disks of iron pyrites, which Dieseldorff would prefer to explain as mirrors, probal)ly served as mosaic incrus- tations of utensils or ornaments (ear pegs or similar articles). The stone disks which Dieseldortf designated as sacrificial plates are pro- vided with holes and connecting grooves which doubtless represent guides for cords." They are, perhaps, ornamental disks like the large disks which we find in Mexican picture writings on the fillets worn on the forehead by difi'erent deities, especially by the sun god (see below, Z*, figure 28), and in a similar manner on different stone heads of Copan.^ He found under this resinous layer a grave formed of stones, in which, near the dead, who were buried in a sitting posture, were found a jaguar's skull, a ring made of a mussel shell, and five potter}^ ves- sels — one painted jug, two cup-like painted vessels, an unpainted pot, and a three-footed bowl.'' Mr Dieseldorff found similar conditions in the northwest mound of the upper plaza, on the left bank of the Salba. He could not per- sonally complete the excavations, but others excavated after him, and various painted vessels were found near the dead. A very inter- esting drawing of one of them Mr Dieseldorff sent to the Berlin Anthropological Society.'*' Lastly, Mr Dieseldorff' found, in a pyramid which forms the southern end of a plaza on the right bank of the river Salba, under a layer of stone, a quantity of A^essels of various shapes embedded in a viscous clay, but all of them were shattered by the fall of the stone layer. Mingled with the vessels were found the remains of various human skeletons, whose recumbent posture, with the head toward the south, was still clearly recognizable. Various stone specimens and a small polyhedral slab of iron pyrites were found a See the photographs in Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, 1893, v. 25, p. 377. &Maudslay, Biologia Centrali Americana, Archaeology, pt. 1, pi. ii. c Of these the painted jug is reproduced in Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, v. 25, 1893, p. 378, and one of the painted jugs, same volume, pi. xvi, fig. 1. d Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, 1894, v. 26, pi. viii. e Three of these are reproduced in the Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, a vessel with the god in the snail shell, V. 25, 1893, pi. XVI, figs. 3, 4, and two others with the figure of the bat god, in the same volume, p. 374, and v. 26, 1894, pi. xill. 88 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 among them; but the resinous mass over the burial chambers in the other two cases was entirely lacking* here. These discoveries are especially interesting because the painted ves- sels belong among those which, partly b}^ reason of the character of the figures, but especially by reason of the hieroglyphs which are found on different ones, are proved to be akin to the Maya manuscripts and sculptures of the great ruin cities of Central America and Yucatan. Such vessels have also been found in other parts of Guatemala, and this fact rather contradicts the statements of the authors, who, while they lay stress on the fact that the Mayas of Yucatan and Peten had "signs and letters with which they wrote their histories and noted their ceremonies, and the order of sacrifices to their idols, and their calendar", nevertheless mention nothing of the kind concerning the races of Guatemala. The isolated statement of Zorita that he was convinced from the paintings of the natives of Utatlan that their ancient history dated back eight hundred years rather indicates picture writings of the nature of the historical codices of the Mexicans. The locality of Chama is quite near the region in which occur ruins of Maya character or sculptures with hieroglyphs. At least four of the vessels which Mr Dieseldorff described in print bear a fairly uniform character, although they were found in three different places, and if they were not manufactured in this locality they must certainly have all originated in the same region. The hieroglyphs conform in general to those of the reliefs and manuscripts, though it is not possi- ble to connect them with particular manuscripts or reliefs. But sev- eral of the pictorial representations, however, seem to refer to certain conditions peculiar to Guatemala.^ Whether these vessels were made in Chama itself, or whether they were brought there in trade, can only be decided when not mere single fragments, but the entire contents of the graves and the earth surrounding them are made known or become accessible for study, as has been done by Mr Strebel. That the place of manufacture can not be very distant, however, must, it seems, be accepted as certain. The eastern provinces have especial importance in the Qu'ekchi region. In Cahabon, as Stoll learned from Professor Rockstroh,* a part of the ancient Chols were settled, and three barrios of this village at that time still claimed the region on the upper Sarstun and to the north of this river as having belonged to their ancestors. Doctor Sapper has been unable to find traces of the Choi language in Cahabon. Still, the dialect of the people of Lanquin and Cahabon differs from that of the Qu'ekchi of Co ban. They likewise differ in certain pecu- liarities in the building of their houses and in their burial customs.^ Doctor Sapper has investigated a few of the caves in this eastern a See Zeitschrift fur Ethnologie, 1894, v. 26, p. 577, and following; 1895, v. 27, p. 27. b Stoll, Guatemala, p. 359. cPetermann's Geographlsche Mittheilungen, 1893, pp. 7, 8. SELER] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 89 region, which he considers quite ancient settlements. In Campur he excavated a small cave which is about 10 meters deep and whose floor slopes inward. Four meters from the entrance a wall, built of stone without mortar, runs obliquely through the cavern. Doctor Sapper found behind this wall some large stones, without recognizable signifi- cance or connection, which may perhaps have been hearthstones or b Fig. 16. Pottery vessels in the form of animal heads, Guatemala. seats. There were, further, remains of pots, most of them without decoration. One fragment had a hole drilled under the rim, doubtless for a cord by which the vessel was carried. A fragment of the rim of a thick vessel showed linear decorations scratched on it. But near by were also found two feet, belonging to vessels, in the form of animal heads of the types copied in a and h, figure 16, apparently of the same 90 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BXTLL. 28 material as the other vessels. There was, further, a pottery stamp with a simple geometric or meander pattern; also clay l)alls, which Doctor Sapper calls blowgun balls, but which, it is more likely, came out of the hollow handles of incense spoons, and may be designated as rattle stones. There were found two fragments of stone hatchets, one of flint, the other of a hornblendic quartz rock; a whetstone, a flint arrow- head, various small obsidian knives, a piece of rock crystal, countless fresh-water shells of the Melania famil} , a land snail, fragments of skeletons of birds and small mammals, among which the paca and other small rodents were recognized. There were also teeth of the jabali, tepescuinte, and other tusked animals, a jaguar's tooth, and noticeably, also, a piece of crab's claw, and a piece of a sea urchin's shell with pores. It was without doubt the wretched abode of a people who lived by the chase. But I believe that there is no special reason to consider it very much older than the other settlements which have become known in that region. A second cave in this region, which was searched by Doctor Sapper, is that of Ceama\^ Fragments of a large thin-walled vessel were found there, the exterior of which was decorated with a sort of mat-braid pattern scratched in fine lines. The finds of Chiatzam seem also to have a peculiar character. Besides a beautiful lance point of flint and a flne obsidian knife, '25 cm. in length and 3 cm. in breadth, the Sapper collection contains fragments of stone jugs, which seem to have had two small handles on the circumference, with a boss between them, and which are decorated at the base of the neck with a double row of small grooved circles. Further, there are worth}^ of notice thick coarse fragments, with deeply scratched ser- pentine lines which form definite figures, and also thick potsherds dec- orated in very deep lines with symbols and hieroglyphs, almost like certain vessels from Tabasco which were placed in the Trocadero Museum by M. Charnay. A pottery head from Chiatzam will be dis- cussed below. From the central parts of the Qu'ekchi territory, the district of Coban, Zamac, San Pedro Carcha, and San Juan Chamelco, the Royal Museum possesses, partly in the Sarg and partly in the Sapper collec- tion, a large number of pottery objects and fragments, mostly small, as well as some stone objects. In his contributions to the ethnography of the Republic of Guate- mala ^ Doctor Sapper calls attention to the difl'erence in the form of the millstones for grinding maize used in the difi'erent parts of Guate- mala. While in the highlands they use clumsy millstones and heavy cylindric hand rollers projecting on each side beyond the edge of the millstone and held at the ends (manufactured about Santa Catalina, not far from Quetzaltenango), there were used in Peten, in Vera Paz, and a Petermann's Geographische Mittheilungen, 1893, p. 12. seler] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 91 in southeast Guatemala lighter millstoMe.s with smooth hand rollers shorter than the breadth of the millstone and held in the middh^ (man- ufacturing- center at Jilotopeque). The first form of hand rollers with a circular section (in many cases becoming nearly square or very much flattened on one side) is also the customary form in the plateau of Mexico. It is represented in the Guatemalan collection of the Royal Museum by a fragment of a hand roller from the ruins of Q'umarcaah- Utatlan, the ancient Quiche capital. A hand roller which Doctor Sapper has sent from the ruins of Bolonchac in Chiapas — that is, from the Tzental territory — shows the smooth, shorter form. It is 25 cm. long by 9 cm. broad and 1^ cm. in its greatest thickness (see figure 15). A similar but less regular form is shown in a hand roller of the Sapper collection from Panquip, or Las Pacayas, a region which belongs to the Pokonchi territory. But, besides these, there occurs in the ancient settlements of Vera Paz a remarkable form of long hand crusher, flattened on two sides almost like a board, with thick knob- like ends which serve as handles and must have extended beyond the sides of the millstone (see the fragment figure 15). Such crushers are in the Sapper collection from Campur and from the neighbor- hood of Coban. In one remarkable piece in the Sarg collection from Cebaczoos {e^ figure 15) these ends are even developed into a sort of handle. I must remark, however, that this flat boardlike form, which differs in a very conspicuous way from the cylindric or quadrangular forms of the Mexican plateau and the highlands of Guatemala, is also found in a specimen of the Strebel collection, which is said to have come from the neighborhood of Misantla in the State of Vera Cruz. Several other hand rollers of the Sapper collection which come from Pilon de Azucar, hence from the Misantla region, show the origin of this form — namely, that the flattened side is cut out, as it were, of the original cylindric tool, the ends remaining thick and knobby. Among the coarser pottery, I will next mention two pieces, one of which came from San Juan Chamelco, the other from the locality of Santa Cruz, which is soon to be discussed in detail. These specimens recall in a certain way the shoe vessels, as they, too, are shaped (see figure 15) suitably to be pushed into the ground. On the whole, they resemble the neck of a jug^ the mouth of which has been closed and forms the bottom of the vessel. The Sarg collection contains an actual small shoe vessel. It is said to have come from Coban. But this vessel is ^o out of place and reminds one so much of the types peculiar to Central America (Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Chiriqui) that I am inclined to think it was accidentally brought here, but I will await further discoveries before deciding. In the Sapper collection there are fragments of ruder vessels from the neighborhood of Coban, with thick, wavy, indented rims. Some are likewise embossed with decorations and have grooved circles, like 92 BUREAU OF AMEEICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 those from Ceamay. There are some polished ones, with dark, thin walls, ornamented with circles and bosses of rather elegant appearance, from Petet, near Coban. There are also some with thick walls and a yellowish-red coating bordered with broad white stripes, from San Juan Chamelco. There are, besides, painted fragments with different patterns in black and red on a yellowish-red ground. Three-footed dishes, so-called cazuelas, with heads of animals as feet, appear to have been much used, together with simple dishes, flat- bottomed or slightly rounded. One wliole dish of this kind is in the Sapper collection from the neighborhood of Coban, and there are also broken-off feet from San Juan Chamelco and other places. A reddish- yellow or dark-brown coating seems to have been preferred for the vessels. The feet of vessels in the form of animal heads partly recall the types in the Strebel collection from Cerro Montoso and those from Cholula. Among the shapes represented I mention the alligator, coati(?), jaguar, monkey, and human face {a to figure 16, which are taken from the Sarg collection). I further mention larger juglike vessels. As in other regions, a face was frequently placed on the necks of these. The Sapper collection contains a ruder fragment of this kind from Campur, and a thinner- walled one from San Juan Chamelco, which I have reproduced in y, figure 16. The circular protuberances on the cheeks are noticeable here. The lips were added separately, but are unfortunately broken awa}^ It is not impossible that a beard may have been indicated, similar to the one depicted in the vessel below (tZ, figure 23). The whole face has a coating of light-red ocher. One must not confuse the head-shaped ends of incense-spoon handles, which are also frequent, with the feet of vessels in the form of animal heads. The former preferably show a reptile head (A, figure 16, from Sacuyo in Doctor Sapper's collection), or they have a human head with empty eye sockets communicating with the hollow interior of the handle {g^ figure 16, from Petet, near Coban, Sarg collection). Here, too, appears a certain analog}^ with the region of the Strebel col- lection. I remark here that in the Yucatan collection of the Royal Museum a similar head, with hollow eye sockets, is used to decorate the front of a cylindric vessel. Many of the feet of vessels and, commonly, the hollow handles of incense spoons, contain little clay balls, which give these articles the character of rattles. A large number of such little clay balls were collected by Doctor Sapper in the cave of Campur. The fragment from Coban (^, figure 17) evidently also belongs to an incense vessel, which was not held in the hand, but was meant to stand. The head, whose ornamental finish strongly recalls the style of the Copan sculptures, is doubtless intended for an animal head. But what kind of an animal it is meant to represent unfortunately can not be lELER] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 93 determined from the frag-merit, as the front of both jaws is broken off. Behind the angles of the jaw a human ear, with a square ear plate, is indicated, which often occurs in annual figures, especially in such as figure in mythology.. In the small collection of antiquities which Mr e Fig. 17. Pottery fragments from Guatemala. Dieseldorff brought over some years ago and which at present is kept at his house in Hamburg is found the handle of an incense spoon, with an animal head at the end, which corresponds almost exactly to our c, figure IT, and which is complete. I have taken pains to make a draw- ing of this object from a few small photographs which I possess of 94 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 thifs collection through the kindness of Mr Dieseldorff, and have reproduced it in a. The nose is remarkabl}^ long, and one is almost tenii:)ted to think of the Tzimin-Chac, the horse of Cortes, which remained in Peten and was worshipped as a god. But I believe another comparison lies nearer. In ^ 1 reproduce in outline a large piece of sculpture from Santa Lucia Cozumalhuapa, which is found in our Royal Museum and which I believe corresponds to the head in a, and probably also to the one in c. This stone head is especially interesting, because it is represented with weeping eyes or, perhaps more correctly, with eyes fallen out of the sockets. In the Mexican calendar writings, whose models doubtless came from the south, the empty eye sockets are the special sign of a certain m^^thologic personage to whom the interpreters give the name Xolotl. This is a person who has no place in the worship of the plateau tribes and is evidently a stranger to them. Something mysterious and unnat- ural pertained to him. By the interpi-eters he was called the "god of monstrosities", and ''monstrosity" is probably the most suitable trans- lation of his name. The empty eye sockets are explained by the Mexican legend which says that, when in Teotihuacan the gods had decided to sacrifice themselves in order to give strength and life to the newly created sim, Xolotl withdrew from this sacrifice and wept so that his eyes started from their sockets. This explanation was invented only to make the unintelligible characteristic of a strange personality com- prehensible to themselves and others. In an earlier work I have sought to make it clear that, since in Zapotec the hairless native dog is called peco-xolo, by Xolotl was originally meant the lightning beast of the Maya tribes, the dog. A dog, or, more correctly, perhaps, a coyote, is, in fact, in certain picture writings, the direct equivalent of Xolotl. But 1 was later convinced that in the above-mentioned Zapotec expres- sion xolo is only the attribute, and in this case designates a special, really unnatural, kind of dog. Thus the dog or coyote has become the representative of Xolotl in a roundabout way, by a secondary train of thought — perhaps, indeed, through the false interpretation of an unknown, uncomprehended animal form. I am inclined to see the true Xolotl in an animal which the Zapotecs likewise designate by xolo, in full, as peche-xolo,^* suggesting the sense of "sinister being", also known to the Mexicans under this name, their tlaca- xolotl. This is the tapir, whose mythologic role is estab- '( "Pecho-xolo", "danta animal silvestre", Juan de Cordoba, Vocabulario Zapoteco. f>Sahagun and Hernandez describe under the name of tlaca-xolotl an animal whicli is said to live in the provinces of Atzaccan, Tepotzotzontlan, and Tlanquilapan, "notfarfrom Honduras". It is as large as an ox, has a long snout, large teeth, hoofs like an ox, a thick hide, and reddish hair. It lives upon wild cocoa, fruits, and leaves of trees, lays waste the maize fields, and is caught in pits and eaten. The name tlaca-xolotl is moreover nothing more than a translation of the Zapotec peche- xolo, for in Zapotec peche is probably a secondary form of peni, "human being", "rational living being" (Mexican tlacatl) as mache is a secondary form of mani, "animal ". The description of Her- nandez contains some conspicuous errors. He translates " pero de la forma de una persona", which in Sahagun refers only to the preceding "los dientes y muelas muygrandes", that is, "very large incisors and molar teeth, but of the same shape as those of men" by " humana paene facie". seler] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 95 lished, yet very little is known of its peculiar nature, and whose well- drawn figure we see in one of the interesting relief tiles of Chiapas. If the tapir be really Xolotl, the empty sockets must be characteristic of the tapir, and we ought to recognize the tapir in however improbable this identitication may be to the eye trained to observe natural phenomena. A quantity of other fragments show the same style and the same conception as a and 6', especially those with conventionalized and orna- mentally developed serpent heads, many of which seem to be found in this region. I have copied in a, figure 18, a fragment from San Juan Chamelco and in h another from Santa Cruz. The human leg, which is seen in the latter fragment under the edge of the upper jaw, prob- ably belongs to a complete human figure which issued from the jaws of the serpent — a very conmion representation which we see in the cedar- wood tablets of Tikal and numerous other sculptures. These are usually clay tablets with quite high and boldly executed reliefs. Some have a peglike attachment on the reverse side. Perhaps they belong to the kind of tablets which I have represented in and Z, figure 20, and which 1 interpret as celestial shields. On the last page of the Dresden manuscript and in the Perez codex the celestial shields ter- minate in half figures, especially heads of crocodiles. It seems more probable to me that they are fragments of complicated figure struc- tures resembling those of the Copan stelae. The material of these quite numerous fragments and also of the fragment in t\ figure 17, is a hard-baked cla}^ of brick-red appearance. The fragments convey a strong impression of having all come from the same place of manufacture. The majority of the heads and figure fragments of this region are made of this same red clay. I reproduce next, in figure 18, the cast of an ancient potter}^ shape, which Doctor Sapper obtained in the region of Coban without being able to fix the exact place of discovery. It is probably a female figure with parted hair falling down at the sides of the head, a lock of which, drawn forward from behind, hangs far down over the shoulder. This long tapering lock of flowing hair in front is likewise a distinguishing characteristic of women in the Dresden manuscript, and we see it, moreover, in the vase painting from Rio Hondo, which is reproduced below in t\ figure 26. The form figure 18, wears large square ornamental tablets in the ears. A cloth is wound about the body immediately below the breasts, and around the neck she wears a cord on which is strung a large quadrangular prismatic stone bead with a round bead at each end. A head figure 19) which comes from San Juan Chamelco evidently belonged to a sim- ilar figure. Here, too, the hair is parted, but bound above the forehead by a tupuy, "headband''. Two other modes of dressing the hair, 96 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 / Fig. 18. Pottery fragments from Guatemala. selek] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 97 doubtless also belonging to female figures, are given in d and figure 18, one a ])ack, the other a front, \aew. The latter strongly reminds us of the festive headdress of an Indian woman whose picture Stoll gives in his contributions to the ethnology of the Indian races of Guatemala/' These two fragments came from San Juan Chamelco. Both the cloth wound around the bod}^ and the neck decoration are also very distinctly seen in the fragment shown in A, figure 19, which like- wise came from San Juan Chamelco. Here again on the neck cord are strung two quadrangular prismatic beads on each side of a small mask, which must have been heavy, for it was held by a separate band or strap passing- over the shoulder. A small pottery pipe of the Sarg collection, which comes from Coban (/", figure 18) shows a woman with a cloth around the body, carrying a large water jug on her shoulder, who has the same way of dressing the hair as c, figure 18, also large square ear plates. The forms a and 6, figure 19, are male heads. The latter, which comes from San J uan Chamelco, is characterized by a large nose bar. The former, which comes from Sesis, is distinguished by a clearly defined and strongly modeled mustache and a foldlike elevation on the fore- head above the root of the nose. I saw a mustache marked in a similar way on a head in the Dieseldorff collection. A mustache and beard are likewise clearly present in a relief (e^ figure 19), from Petet, near Coban, now in the Sarg collection. In the remarkable vessel from Chama which Mr Dieseldorfi' described in the Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologic^ all the persons of the group at the left of the picture are distinguished by a more or less prominent growth of hair on the upper lip and chin. I believe that we have here, if not an anthro- pologic distinction, certainly an ethnologic one, and, at the same time, proof that the heads and reliefs which I have copied here were made in the same region as the painted pots of Chama or, at least, in some adjacent region, which increases the probability that none of these articles were importations, but were made on the spot. The two reliefs e and /belong to the Sarg collection. The former was found in Petet, the latter in Chicojoito, near Coban. ^' Unfortu- nately, both are fragments and must each be assigned to a separate group of figures. They are male figures. That at e distinctly shows a mustache and beard; f shows them less clearly. The manner of dressing the hair seems to be the same in both. It is long and hanging down behind, and is cut off over the forehead, just as the Dominican monks described it as being worn among the Qu'ekchis and the Chols. It was, as we know, a very difiScult task for the monks to persuade their a Internationale? Archiv f\ir Ethnographie (Leiden), supplement to v. 1, pi. ii, lig. 15. bl894, V. 26, pi. VII. cl am familiar with similar quadrangular pottery reliefs bordered by broad stripes from Teotitlan del Camino in the State of Oaxaca. They all appear to be parts of square seat-like foundations of pottery figures. 7238— No. 28—05 7 98 BUEEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 a seler] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 99 heathen pupils to have their hair cut in a Christian and civilized man- ner. In the figures on the reliefs we are considering the hair seems to have been removed from the middle of the head, like a tonsure, and from the back of the crown decorations of feathers (quetzal feathers) hang far down the back. For ornament both figures wear square ear plates and necklaces of large round beads. They are clothed with the breechcloth (Mexican maxtlatl, Maya ex), the knot of which is large and plainly seen in while in f it is covered by a skull which this figure wears on a cord hang-ing over the back. The action is difficult to explain, since the opposite figure is wanting. An offering or a presentation appears to be expressed. I can say nothing further in explanation. The head in g was obtained by Doctor Sapper in Chiatzam. It was made of the same brick-red clay as all of the above-described heads and fragments, and is the first which we can identify with a known mythologic character. The hair standing erect in flaming tongues, and especially the eye with the four radiations on the forehead, lead us to recognize in it Kinich Ahau, the sun god. The piece is unfor- tunately incomplete, the lower half of the face being absent. But the Dieseldorfl' collection contains two heads which represent the sun god and have a very peculiar characteristic on the lower half of the face. Mr Dieseldorff permitted me to make a sketch of these. They are a and })^ figure 20. Both come from the neighborhood of San Juan Chamelco. They can be recognized as representations of the sun god by the large, peculiarly formed eye, whilst h is distinguished also by the hair, and a b}^ the cross over the forehead, which is a variant of the Kin sign. Both show, as the most striking peculiarity, teeth filed to a point in a certain manner. This is precisely the peculiarity which occurs with great regularit}^ in the Copan sculptures of the sun god. A glance at c and <^ will suffice to confirm this. The form c is taken from Stela H, d from Stela A (Maudslay's notation). Both are clearly designated as representations of the sun god by the Kin sign on the forehead. But we also see this same peculiarity in the heads of the sun god which stand among the initial numerical hieroglyphs of the stelse in the sixth place, directly before the name of the katun (10 Ahau), which thus denote the units, that is, the single days (see e andy, which are taken from Stelae A and J). The beardlike lines indicated below the head of the sun god are without doubt the u mex kin, ''the beard of the sun", " the sunbeams". Wherever in this place, instead of the ^ head of the sun god, the simple Kin sign stands, as on Stela M of Copan and on the altar slab of the first cross temple number in Palenque, this sun beard is regularly indicated (see g and A). 1 should further like to call attention to the fact that the representa- tions of the sun god found in the manuscripts by no means show the teeth filed to a point in the same characteristic way. Therefore the 100 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 Fig. 20. Pottery ornaments from Guatemala. seler] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 101 fact that this is so distinctly brought out in the heads of San Juan Chamelco is of especial weight. It proves that the ancient inhabitants of Vera Faz were under the immediate influence of the civilized nation which had erected the monumental structures of Copan, perhaps were identical with them; at any rate, that they were closel}^ akin to them. Further, I will not omit to mention that this peculiar manner of filing the teeth is seen on the pottery pipes of the Strebel Ranchito de las Animas collection, the so-called ''Totonac priests", which are sitting, standing, or carousing figures, dressed in a peculiar capelike overgarment. In this connection a few other small antiquities, some of which are contained in the Sapper collection, and some in the Dieseldortf collec- tion, from this region, seem to me to be of importance. These are red pottery tablets with a rectangular border, on which, between raised intersecting moldings, is a series of consecutive symbols executed in relief. I copied a fragment of the Sapper collection, seen in /, and attempted, in / and l\ to reproduce some of the symbols contained on these fragments from photographs of the Dieseldorft' collection. I believe that in these fragments we have celestial shields executed in relief, that is, they correspond to the tablets (square or rectangularly bent), bearing the signs Kin, Akbal, and variants of the same, which occur frequently in the Maya manuscripts, and which Forstemann would like to interpret as S3mibols of difierent stars or planets. Messrs Sapper and Dieseldorff formerly attached special importance to the little rosettes {d^ figure 19), which occur frequently in the region of Chamelco. I consider them fragments of larger figures, and do not believe that any deeper meaning can be attached to the number symbols on them, excepting, of course, the four parts into which the center knot divides. On the latter there are traces of blue color, as in the ear plates of />, figure 19. The rosette itself appears to have been painted crimson. The ear plates might, perhaps, be considered to represent turquoise mosaic, and the same might be true of the knots of the rosettes. A few pottery figures (pipes) of the Sarg collection, said to have come from the cave of Zabalam, near Coban, are of a peculiar character (^7, ^, and c, figure 21). The material is a brick-red clay, which is some- what more sandy than in the fragments described before, painted in certain places partly light-blue and partly white. The whole construc- tion has something reniarkably modern about it; the first, shows a figure clothed with a maxtlatl and a loin cloth, wearing large round ear pegs and a cylindric stone bead on a cord around the neck, and adorned with great winglike feather ornaments projecting from the sides of the head. The figure is represented in a dancing posture before a sort of tree, whose branches are made of unripe ears of maize still in the husk. Such an ear of maize also rises high over the head of the figure. Both at the right and left are seen figures of animals 102 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 (squirrel and bird) nibbling the ears of maize. There are also animal figures erect on their haunches at the feet of the principal figure. c Fig. 21. Pottery figures from Guatemala. The second piece, h, is a sitting figure, similarly costumed, with a large headdress, the chief feature of which is a high braided structure, perhaps .selkk] ANTIQUITIES OF GU ATP^MALA 103 an imitation of an ear of maize. The tree with the ears of maize and the animal figures is lacking. The third piece, c, one might actually sup- pose to be the representation of a Spaniard if this idea were not con- tradicted by the ear ornament, the broad bead anklets, and, especially, the maxtlatl. The figure may, perhaps, be thought to be clothed with an ichcauipil, or quilted armor, unless we have before us, which is also very probable, a Christian cacique in Spanish costume. Under the left hand there is an object which looks almost like a Spanish shield, but is perhaps a piece of cloth with a broad border. It is this last figure which suggests the idea that in all three pieces we have fantastic images of recent date. On the other hand, I find in the photographs of the Dieseldorff collection an ear of maize, which seems as if it were broken from a figure similar to the one in ml.^^.n^Hl^^«.NfMj(f^m^ d Fio. 28. Animal-.shaped vessel from Guatemala. of creation, forming the center. Here, in the last division of the tonalamatl, which consequently belongs to the south, the picture («, figure 23) is seen showing the hieroglyph of the south (Nohol) and the war gods with the bound captive. That one is the division belonging to the south and the other the sign belonging to the south 1 have already pointed out in my paper on Mexican chronology.^ aZeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, 1891, v. 23, pp. 104,105. SKLER] ANTIQUITTER OF GUATEMALA 107 The settlement of Panquip, or Las Pacayas, belongs to the Pokonchi territory, where Messrs Sapper and Dieseldorff also made ex(!avations. From this locality the Royal Musemn possesses only a few fine obsid- ian lance points, one of flint, and a few pottery fragments, among them thin quadrangular tablets with perforations near the corners, the meaning of which is not clear to me. There still remain some classes of antiquities which 1 have not yet discussed, because they cover a wider range of territory and l)ecause there is greater probability that they were imported articles of trade. These are the vessels covered with hierogl3^phs and delicate painting and the green and gra}^ enameled or glazed vessels. The Royal Museum possesses a few fragments of vessels with deli- cate painting from this territory, and also from San Juan Chamelco. Two types, at least, are to be distinguished among them, and it seems to me that the same two types can also ])e recognized among fragments from the ruins of Copan. As to the hieroglyphs, it is frequently impossible in a particular case to sa}^ whether we have before us a mere ornament or a hieroglyph, although, perhaps, in most cases a definite symbolic meaning must finally be ascribed to an ornament. Among the fragments of the Sapper collection from San Juan Chamelco the two ornaments or hieroglyphs shown in the cut, symmetrically repeated on a band running around near the upper edge of the vessel, are plainly to be seen. One (J, figure 23), is scratched on a vessel of dark color. The ornament and the two borders are painted in white. The ornament c is painted in red on a light, yellowish- white vessel. The former vessel appears to have no other decoration. Figures were painted on the second one, but, unfortunately, some of them are obliterated, and some are unrecognizable. I can find no anal- ogy for these two ornaments among the familiar hieroglyphs of the manuscripts. The existence of enameled vessels from Vera Paz is now also proved, partly by isolated specimens of the Sarg collection and partly by various fragments collected by Doctor Sapper in the ancient Indian settlements visited b}^ him. Some of these vessels are greenish, some gray, and others, occasionally found in considerable quantities, are light-red. These vessels are distinguished from the well-known ancient American pottery by apparently having an actual glaze. As a rule the}^ are beautifully made vessels in animal or human form, or they are face jars. From the Karwinski collection the Royal Musuem possesses a fine piece of this kind, 6?, representing the peche-xolo, or tlacaxolotl, thetzimin of the Maya nations, the "tapir". Two others came into possession of the Royal Museum with the Uhle collection. One represents a parrot with open jaws holding a human face, like as 108 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 in d. The other has the form of a beast of prey, a pitzotl (coati) or something of the sort. The Sarg collection contains the beautiful vessel from Coban [a, tigure 24), which represents a toad, and another vessel of the same kind 6 Fig. 24. Ornamented bowls from Guatemala. from Zamac, near Coban, which, it seems, is intended to represent a monkey, but the front part of it is unfortunately broken off. These vessels appear to be more frequent in Yucatan. The Archbishop of Merida, Dr Crescentio Carrillo y Ancona, describes a similar vessel, in SELER] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 109 the third volume of the Afiales del Museo Nacional de Mexico, which was found when digging- the foundation for a new building in Puerto Progreso, near Merida {a^ figure 25). These pieces seem to have been carried far to the north. In the Strebel collection is found the curious specimen (J, hgure which comes from the region of Atotonilco and Quimistlan, and also belongs to this class of vessels. Several face jars with bearded faces were found in Yucatan. Maudslay copies a similar glazed one from Copan. Entirely similar fragments of appar- ently glazed vessels were found in the excavations made by Mr Strebel at Zoncuautla in the district of Coatepec of the state of Vera Cruz. I have hitherto been unable to determine what kind of glaze is on these vessels, as rare and beautiful pieces were always concerned which could not be sacrificed to chemical investigation. However, there is hope that Mr Holmes, of Chicago," who at present is making a 6 c Fig. 25. Pottery vessels from Guatemala. special study of these vessels, will throw light on this question. The broad geographic area within which these pieces are found proves that in them we have to deal with ware which was distributed by trade. Even to-day, isolated places of manufacture — as, for example, Chi- nautla in Guatemala — provide the whole region within a radius of many days' journey with pottery wares. In ancient times beautiful pottery vessels were a much-prized ware. Landa tells of the Ma3^as that custom required them at the close of a feast to give to each guest a mantle, a carved stool, and a pottery vessel, as delicate and costly as the host could afford. In the present state of our knowledge it can not be stated in what region these glazed vessels were made. Only so much can be said, that it must have been a region of the tierra caliente, or lying very near it, where the tapir, the parrot, the coati, the monkey, and the toad of the tierra caliente « Now of the Bureau of American Ethnology. Ed. 110 BUREAU OF AMEBIC AN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 were known/* My suspicion turns to Tabasco or the neighboring Chiapas. In ancient times the former was a famous commercial cen- ter, and the industrial centers can not have been far from there. If we sum up what the authentic discoveries from the territory of Vera Paz, the lands of Qu'ekchi and Pokonchi, teach us, it follows with certainty from the abundance and variety of objects and from their artistic conception and peculiar manner of decoration that the ancient inhabitants of these regions were a people of advanced civilization, and that their culture was of the same peculiar stamp to be met with in the monuments of Copan and Quirigua, although in an entirely dif- ferent degree of grandeur. At the same time it seems that we must conclude from various evidences that the active intercourse existing between Laguna de Terminos and Honduras in ancient times, to which doubtless the above-named places owed their prosperity, also made itself felt in the valleys of Vera Paz b}^ influencing their progress and by stimulating and developing them. It would be a grateful task to determine whether for the other Maya tribes of Gruatemala, who were especially prominent in its political development, the Quiche and Cakchiquel, the Mame in the north, the Pokomam in the south, a similar close connection with those brilliant centers of Maya culture can be determined, and, on the other hand, to make plain the possible differences which existed. Unfortunately, I have not the material to do so. I can only sa}^ this, that the few origi- nals and copies from those regions with which I am familiar are in fact of a different character, and have not the artistic perfection which we see in the finds from Vera Paz. Circular bowls, 6 cm. deep and 16 cm. in diameter, are characteristic of Amatitlan, a locality in the Pokomam territory. These vessels have a broad, flat, turned-over rim, and their outer surface has two or three rows of long teeth (see figure 25). A toothed vessel of another form somewhat higher and smaller, and with rather long feet, was obtained by Consul-General Sarg in Nebah — that is, in the Ixil (Mame) territory. Shoe vessels, which are properly called xe lahuh, ""'foot of the ten", seem to be peculiar to the place called Quetzaltenango, in the Quiche territory; ^, figure 25, is a copy of one of these vessels. This difi'ers from the familiar shoe vessels of Nicaragua chiefly in the pointed tip. 1 know of a few beautiful pottery heads and a fragment of a finely smoothed vessel from Saculeu, which is in the department of Huehue- tenango, and thus belongs also to the Mame territory. On these are seen the signs reproduced in figure 26. The ornament on the left side, an eye with a double (upper and lower) eyebrow, also appears «Toad figures with the same indented warts on the sides of the neck as shown in the vessel (a, fig. 24), I have also seen in large vessels from Yucatan and in little pottery pipes of the Strebel collec- tion which came from the region south of the city of Vera Cruz, on the boundary of Mistequilla, where excavations have recently been begun by him. SELEU] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 111 on fragments from Copan/' There is, further, a vessel now in the Uni- versity Museum in Philadelphia said to have come from the region of Huehuetenango, which, T believe, 1 saw at the exposition in Madrid, the hieroglyphs of which Professor Brinton has reproduced. The}^ are actualh^ the same characters which we see on the stelae of Copan, executed in very curious and, in places, rather carelessl}^ drawn lines — namely, the katun sign in the same two modifications which occur, for instance, on Stela C of Copan, and among them are also katun numerals and a row of other hieroglyphs. In figure 26, 1 give the tirst two signs on the right side of this vessel, as I copied them two years ago in Madrid, and beside them the corresponding hieroglyphs of Stela A of Copan. Doubtless we are here concerned with a piece a b A BCDE FGH C Fig. 26. Symbolic figures from Guatemalan pottery . which came, either through trade or as a present, from the region of the Chols or Chortis in the western highlands, whose inhabitants were familiar with the art of writing. Finally, I will mention that one of the remarkable stone yokes — a simple, undecorated one — that came into possession of the Royal Museum from the collection of Professor von Seebach, is said to have come originally from Quiche or Cakchiquel territory, namel^^, from Solola. This would be remarkable, for the reason that most of the regions where these inexplicable articles have been found are on the Atlantic slope, in the present States of Vera Cruz and Tabasco. Wedged in between the Quiche and theChorti tribes, separating the Pokomams from the kindred Pokonchis, there is found in the valley of a See Brinton, A Primer of Mayan Hieroglyphs, 1894, p. 107, fig. 63. 112 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 the Rio Grande, or Motagua, and the heights rising above it, another separate territory whose extreme boundaries are formed by the region of Salama on the one side and the Copan river on the other, where in ancient times a branch of the Pipils, a Nahuatl-speaking tribe, was settled. Stoll relates a local tradition which exists in Salama, telling how these Mexicans were first brought from Tuxtla Grande in Spanish times. On this account the people of Salama wear the same costume to-day as those of Tuxtla. This tradition did not seem very credible to Stoll himself. 1 am inclined to think that too late a date was given. An actual tradition may have existed that the people of Salama came from those regions, but the immigration must have occurred in pre-Spanish tinges. The spread of the Nahua tribe toward the south, according to my conviction, proceeded in general from Tabasco, for the Zapotec tribes have probably always formed a barrier in the way through Tehuantepec and the Sierra de los Quelenes, w hich Ahuitzotl, the predecessor of Mote- cuhzoma first succeeded in breaking. But from Tabasco the Mexicans must have penetrated at an early date to Chiapas and Soconusco on the roads which Bernal Diaz and his companions who settled at Coat- zacualco easily found later. The Nahuas reached the valley of the Motagua, and farther Honduras, San Salvador, and Nicaragua, by the great overland road which Cortes traveled with his army. The Pipils of Escuintla are probably a receding stream of this migratory wave. A third branch must finally have found its way to the interioi of Yucatan. This is known from historical accounts in the books of the Chi Ian Balam, and to my mind is made still clearer by the reliefs of Chichenitza. On all of these three highways the Nahua tribes came into more or less close contact with the Maya tribes. An inter- change of cultural elements doubtless took place, and probably resulted still more abundantly from the peaceful journeyings of Mexican merchants, not undertaken for the purpose of finding a per- manent home. One of the most important and most interesting prob- lems of Central American archeology is the question how this giving and receiving was distributed. We shall, however, not be able to approach the solution of this matter until carefully collected and com- plete archeologic material exists from these border regions of inter- mixture, where the Nahua tribes lived as neighbors of the Mayas. What remarkable disclosures may eventually be expected in this matter is shown by the interesting relief tiles from Chiapas in the Mnseo National de Mexico, which are published in the great illustrated work which the Junta Colombina de Mexico issued in commemoration of the four hundredth centenary of the discovery of America. And then, too, the magnificent monuments of Santa Lucia Cozumalhuapa certainly originated at just such a point of contact between Nahuatl and Maya civilizations. SELER] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATPMALA 113 The sketches of three vessels, which 1 reproduce bek)w, ciiine to me through the kindness of Mr Dieseldortf from the a>)()ve-mentione(l Pipil territory on the Rio Motagua. They come from the little place Rio Hondo, lying on the Motagua opposite the mouth of the Copan river, and belong to the collection of Mr B. Castaneda in Zacapa. The first vessel (c, figure 26) has a height of 15.3 cm. and a diameter at the bottom of 10.5 cm. and at the mouth of 16 cm., and the thickness of the walls is 4 mm. The second vessel (/, figure 27) is 17.2 cm. high, 13.5 cm. in diameter at the mouth, and the thickness of its walls is 5 mm. The figure and the hieroglyph tablet are repeated three times ABODE F G t Fig. 27. Glyphs from Maya codices and design on Guatemalan vessel. on the circumference of the vessel, but the drawing is badly injured })y fire. The third vessel («, figure 28) is 22.6 cm. high, the diameter measures at the bottom 12.7 cm., at the mouth 15.8 cm., and the walls are 6 mm. thick. The first of these three vessels is of pure Maya character. The figures, as well as the hieroglyphs, might have been copied directly from a Mava manuscript. The second is also unmistakably of Maya character, though the position of the figure is decidedly stiffer. The third, however, has an especial character. The models of its figures can only be found in Mexican or kindred manuscripts (Mixtec and Zapotec), and what hieroglyphs there are difi^er in every way from the familiar 7288— No. 28—05 8 114 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 forms in Maya hieroglyphs. If it is true of any specimen, we have in this vessel the artistic production of a nation foreign to the Maya soil. It is in all probability to be ascribed to the Pipils, the Nahua tribe, who undoubtedly lived here a long time before the conquest. To begin with, the vessel of pure Maya type (c, figure 26), the person- ages represented on it are women. This is especially proved by the long wisps of hair flying down in front, which can be seen in quite similar fashion on the female forms in the Dresden manuscript. The position of the arms and hands is a favorite one in the figures of gods in the Mexican picture writings, especially in the Borgian codex and Codex Vatican us B, which, however, appears also in the Dresden manuscript, for example, in the Moan bird, on page 11^. The raised or outstretched hand is evidently a gesture of speech or of command, h c d Fig. 28. Design on Guatemalan vessel and figures from Mexican codices. which, in fact, and especially in this case, are the same thing, for tlahtouani, or tlauto, ''the speaker", means the ruler, the prince. The clothing of the figures seems to consist of an enagua, a cloth wrapped about the hips like a petticoat and fastened about the middle of the body with a band. Those objects seem to be the ends of this band which are seen to rise above the enagua and fall down behind. The figures are represented sitting with crossed legs. Protruding from the enagua is the bare left thigh and below this the naked sole of the right foot, a typical position which is very often drawn in the Dresden man- uscript. But the lines in our picture are so displaced as to give the impression that the drawing is not from life, but from a familiar picture repeated in a stereotyped way. The same impression is made in studying the hieroglyphs. I have skler] ANTIQUITIES OF GUATEMALA 115 every reason to believe that the drawing which I reproduce here is an exact copy. Yet I have the impression that the artist, whether man or woman, who painted these characters on the vessel was not con- scious of the meaning of their different elements and lines, and there- fore drew them with an uncertain hand. An exact identification is, of course, only possible in the case of a few. All eight hieroglyphs differ one from another, so the next question is, Where should we begin to read? The relative position of the hieroglyphs shows that they must be read from left to right. I believe we must begin with the hieroglyph which in the drawing provided by Mr Dieseldorflf, (our figure 26), stands in the first place at the left. 1 will designate this by A. I believe that two elements must be recognized in this first hiero- glyph: First, the head of a woman (see the hieroglyph a, figure 27), but having a peculiar element which is contained in the day sign Eb, "broom", h\ second, the day sign Manik, whose phonetic sound is chi, which is contained in the hieroglyph Chikin, "west". A com- bination of these two elements exists in the hieroglyph which is found on page 62 of the Dresden manuscript, in combination, to be sure, with a third element which has the form of the day sign Imix. The second hieroglyph, b, must, it seems to me, refer to the hiero- glyph which appears in the Dresden codex, page 12^, as one of the accompanying hieroglyphs of the death god in place of the hieroglyph y, otherwise indicated in this place. Hieroglyphs b and e are especiall}^ characterized as death hieroglyphs by the cross design on the cheek. It is possible that hieroglyph d also refers to one of the hieroglyphs accompanying the death god, the one of which I have reproduced two variants in g and h. The hieroglyphs c and e show the head of a bird which in both cases has a curious projection on the beak. One might think that the great vulture was represented here whose hieroglyph, A\ is alwa} s drawn with a peculiar projection on the beak and which, in fact, is character- ized by a fleshy growth on the cere covering the root of the upper mandible. I believe, however, that, at least in one of the hieroglyphs, it seems to suggest a bird which generally appears accompanying the black god. I have reproduced the whole of this bird in and its hieroglyph, as it is found in the Troano codex, page 4* e published in facsimile b}^ Mrs Nuttall: Es de notar que siempre comienga el ano en un dia de quatro, el uno que llaman acatl. Y de alii toman nonbre. O en otro que llaman calli. Y de alii toman non- bre. O en otro que llaman tecpatl. Y de alii toman nonbre. Y de otro que llaman tochtli. Y de alii toman nonbre (" It is to be noted that the year always^ begins on one of four days — the one which they call Acatl, and from there they take the name; or on another which they call Calli, and from there they take the name; or on another which they call Tecpatl, and from there they take the name; and from another which they call Tochtli, and from there they take the name "). This is clear and intelligible, and Mrs Nuttall has correctly made this passage the starting point for her researches. It is quite another question, and one which I must touch upon here, whether the month Atlcaualco, stated by Sahagun and others to be the first month of the 3^ear, is really the one which was the leading, or first, month at the time when the designation of the years, accord- ing to the four days Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, and Tochtli, first came into use. This question, it seems, should be answered in the negative. The most important statement by the old writers which makes an agreement betAveen the Mexican and our chronolog}^ and a compari- son of the Mexican designations of the years with certain days of any one year possible is that made in Sahagun, book 12, chapter 40, where it is stated that the capture of Quauhtemoctzin, which put an end to the desperate defense of the city of Mexico, occurred on the day ce Coatl, " 1 snake of the year yei Calli, " 3 house " : Auhin omoman chimalli inic tixitinque in xiuhtonalli ei calli, auh in cemilhuitlapoalli ce Coatl ("When the shield was laid down (the war ceased), while we fell to the ground, that was the year ' 3 house ' and the day ' 1 snake'"). (Biblioteca Lorenziana manuscript.) This day was, as we know^ from the letters of Cortes and Gomara's history, Tuesday, St. Hippolytus's day, August 13, 1521." The Aztec writer Chimal- pahin says the same thing in his Seventh Relation : Yhcuac canque yn tlatohuani Cuauhtemoctzin ypan cemilhuitonalli ce cohuatl * * * ic matlactlomey mani metztli agosto, ypan ylhuitzin S. Tipo- lito, martyr (" They took King Quauhtemoctzin prisoner on the day ' 1 snake ' * * * on the 13th day of August, the feast of the holy martyr Hippolytus ") On the basis of this statement Orozco y Berra, in the second volume of his Historia Antigua y de la Conquista de Mexico, tried to find an agreement between the Mexican and Euro- « Cartas de Hernan Cortes, ed. Gayangos, Paris, 1866, p. 257 ; Gomara, Cronica, chap. 143. " Anales de Domingo Francisco de San Anton Munoz Chimalpahiu Quauhtlehiianitzin. Seventh Relation, edid. Remi Simeon, p. 194. 140 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 pean chronologies ; but the attempt failed in the most essential points, since Orozco favored the erroneous vieAv that the Mexicans began their years, and therefore also what they called their months, with the days Cipactli, Miquiztli, Ozomatli, and Cozcaquauhtli. In order to make the matter clear, I will mention still another point of agreement. In the Seventh Relation of Chimalpahin (page 188 of Remi Simeon's edition) we read that the entrance of Hernan Cortes into Mexico and his reception by the kings of the three allied kingdoms, Mexico, Tetzcoco, and Tlacopan, took place on the day chicuey Ehecatl, " 8 wind ", the ninth day of the month Quecholli : " ypan cem ilhuitlapohnalli chicuey ehcatl, auh yn ipan ynin metz- tlapohual catca huehuetque chiucnahuilhuitia quecholli We have also a statement in regard to the same da}^ in the Aztec account which is preserved in the Sahagun manuscript of the Biblioteca Lorenziana. This latter account agrees Avith the former in stating that the coming of the Spanish occurred in the year ce Acatl, " 1 reed on the 9th of the month Quecholli — or, as the author says, on the eve of the 10th of the month Quecholli — but it differs from it in saying that this day was not designated as a day 8 wind but as ce Ehecatl, " 1 wind and that would be a day 20 days previous to the other : " auh in izquilhuitico in Mexico in ic calaquico in Espanoles: ipan ce hecatl in cemilhuitlapoalli : auh in xiuhtonalli ce acatl, oc muztla tlamat- lactiz quecholli : auh in cemilhuitique ome calli : vel iquac in tlama- tlactli quecholli If we consult Spanish historians we find, in Ber- nal Diaz del Castillo's Historia Verdadera, the day of the Spanish entrance given as November 8 of the year 1519. The writer of the account in the Sahagun manuscript continues his computation from the date given above by counting each month, to which fact I would call attention here. This was, no doubt, the usual historic chronology, for on page 136 of Codex Vaticanus A we see the months which elapsed during the stay of the Spaniards in the city similarly set down. The writer of the Sahagun account reckons in this way to the feast Toxcatl, w^hen AJvarado fell upon the unarmed Mexicans decked for the feast and slaughtered the flower of the Mexican nobility, and then onward to the feast Tecuilhuitontli, that is, the completion of the month Tecuilhuitontli. On this day. he says, the Spanish fled by night from the city : " Niman quival- toquilia tecuilhuitontli, ie oncan in quizque, vel ipan in ilhuitl in quizque in Espanoles in moioalpoloque There were altogether, he says, 235 days, that is, 195 days during which the Spaniards and Mexicans were friends and 40 days during which they fought each other. Computed accurately this can not mean the feast Tecuilhui- tontli itself, but the eve of the feast. For counting 235 days from the ninth day of the month Quecholli we come to the 19th and not to SELER] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT I 141 the 20th, the hist day of the month Tecuilhuitoiitli. The Spaniards probably left the hostile city on the night before the feast, and the narrator counts the whole days which lay between the ninth day of Quecholli and the feast Teciiilhuitontli. It can be computed with tolerable accuracy that this day, the "noche triste " of unhallowed memory to the Spanish, was the 30th of June, 1520.<^ But from Nov- ember 8, 1519, to June 30, 1520, there are actualW 235 days, since 1520 was a leap year. The authenticated European chronology and that of our Indian informant thus agree perfectly. If we now compare these newly acquired dates with the one first quoted, the clay of Quauhtemoc's capture, we have the following com- putation: Betw^een November 8, 1519, and August 13, 1521, there elapsed 644 days. If Ave count 644 days from the 9th day of Que- cholli in the Indian calendar of feasts, in doing which we should take into account that the Mexicans had no leap years, we come to the third day of the month Xocotluetzi. We must conclude that in the Indian calendar of feasts this was the day of Quauhtemoc's capture. But now, before I draw" further conclusions from this result, I must mention that it contradicts certain other records. According to an account quoted by Leon y Gama Quauhtemoc's capture did not take place in the month Xocotluetzi, but in Nexochimaco, or Tlaxo- chimaco, the preceding month. Chimalpahin seems to make a simi- lar statement, for he says, in the passage from which I quoted above: Auh yye ohuacic nauhpohuallonmatlaqu-ilhuitl yn otech icalque tlaxochimaco yye . . . yc tixitinque (" after they had striven against us 90 days, we at last surrendered in Tlaxochi- maco (?)"). It is obvious that this can not be reconciled with the statements mentioned above. As, however, those other statements are to a certain extent controlled by European computation, it is very pos- sible that there is an error here, the more so because, by our calcu- lation, the day of Quauhtemoc's capture was comparatively close to the feast Tlaxochimaco, being on the third day following it. The beginning of the battle and the appearance of the Spanish caravels at Nonoucalco, which, according to Chimalpahin's repeated assertion, occurred 90 da^^s before, are placed by Chimalpahin in the month Toxcatl. This coincides with our reckoning. But when he says in the passage in question ^ that it was on the day ce Cozcaquauhtli, 1 king vulture it is incorrect. It is undoubtedly a slip of the pen or, perhaps, an error in reading. It should rather be ei Cozcaquauhtli, The letter of Cortes states that the army reached Tlaxcala on the Sth of July, and from the general's accurate account of their progress each day it appears that they left the capital on the last night of June, or rather the morning of July 1 (Prescott, Hist. Conquest Mexico) Dos I'iedras, 2d ed., p. 79, note, and p. 80. ' Page 193 of the R€mi Simeon edition. 142 BUREAU or AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 " 3 king vulture ". This latter day occurs 90 days before the day ce Coatl, the day of Quauhtemoc's capture. Now, if the day of Quauhtemoc's capture was August 13, 1521, the third day of the month Xocotluetzi, it follows, as this was said to have been likewise a day ce Coatl, " 1 snake ", that the first day of the month must have been the day 12 Calli and the first day of the year 1 Calli. Hence it follows, as I stated above, and as can safely be concluded from the dates in our manuscript, that the years of the Mexicans began with the signs Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, and Tochtli, and not, as was hitherto generally supposed, Avith the signs Cipactli, Miquiztli, Ozomatli, and Cozcaquauhtli ; and it follows, since the year 1521 is said to have been a year 3 Calli, that the years of the Mexicans were not named for the first day of the first month, Atlcaualco, as has been commonly believed, but, as the computation shows, for the first day of the fifth month, on whose last day the feast Toxcatl was celebrated ; lastly, it follows that the beginning of the month Atlcau- alco in the year of the conquest did not fall on the 2d of February, as was decided after much discussion at the Indian conference held at Tlatelalco in Sahagun's time," but that it must have fallen on the 12th of February. The latter result is of special importance because it proves that in the forty odd years which elapsed between the year of the conquest and the time when the Sahagun manuscript was com- posed ^ the beginning of the Mexican year was set forward 10 days. This is exactlj^ the sum of the intercalary days, which occur in this period of time, and proves that the Mexicans did not know how to regulate their chronology by intercalations at short intervals. If this is firmly established, then we may further conclude that the day of the arrival of the Spaniards, said to have been the ninth day of the month Quecholli, can have been neither 8 Ehecatl (as Chimalpa- hin states) nor 1 Ehecatl (as the writer of the account in the Sahagun manuscript asserts), but must have been the day before 7 Cipactli or 13 Cipactli. Otherwise, the month must have begun with a day Ocelotl, which, as we have seen, is incorrect. But if from 1 Coatl, the day of Quauhtemoc's capture, we count 644 days backward in the Indian calendar we do not arrive at 1 Cipactli, but at 7 Cipactli. Chimalpahin's statement was, therefore, relatively correct (within 1 day), and the writer of the account in the Sahagun manuscript made an error of 20 days. The only explanation I can give for the fact that both sources agree in mentioning a da}^ Ehecatl instead of a day Cipactli is that tradition confused the day and its eve or that the name of the day was not held fast by tradition, but Avas only recov- « See Sahagun, v, 7, chap. 12. •* In tLe Sahagun manuscript of the Academia de la Histoiia the year ome Acatl ( = A. D. 1559) is given as the year of writing down at least certain parts (the historical ones) of the manuscript. seler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT I 143 ered by computation, and that perhaps in doing this they reckoned back not ()44, but 643, days, possibly because leap year was not taken into account. If this be denied, and if the assertions of Chimalpahin nnd the account in the Sahagun manuscript that the ninth day of the month Quecholli was a day Ehecatl — the only statements to my knowledge where there is a distinct agreement between the day of the month and the name of the day — be considered correct, we should arrive at the days Ocelotl, Quiauitl, Cuetzpalin, and Atl as the first days of the years named for the characters Acatl, Tecpatl, Calli, and Tochtli. This result is at first sight rather attractive. We should thus r.rrive at precisely the characters which answer to the signs Ix, Cauac, Kan, and Muluc, with which the Mayas began their years in later times. It would then follow that the correction which was made by the Mayas also found acceptance among the Mexicans. I believe, however, since there are no other proofs, and since our computation is upheld by the statements of historians, that if the ninth day of Quecholli had been a day Ehecatl only 643 days would have elapsed before the capture of Quauhtemoc, and then one of the two above dates, that given by Bernal Diaz or that given b}^ Cortes, would have to be cor- rected; and since reasons of a general nature, as I have said before, favor the view I have advanced we must not lay too nmch stress on this one assertion, especially as an error seems very probable. As I have already said, it is our manuscript, Avith its festival dates run- ning through nearly nineteen years, which furnishes decisive evi- dence. Chimalpahin wrote at the beginning of the seventeenth century and the Sahagun manuscript was composed about the 3^ear 1559. At those periods the ancient mode of reckoning the festival dates had long since fallen into disuse. The manuscript of the Hum- boldt collection is of ancient date, as is shown by the style of the drawing and by the dress of the figures. Its testimony is of decisive value. After settling these points, w^hich are generally necessary and also useful for the proper understanding of our manuscript, I now return to the dates given in columns a and b of our manuscript. In the beginning of this chapter I mentioned that the lower part of the manuscript is incomplete, that the upper part seems to be the actual end of the strip, and that the strip was not farther written upon because, for some reason, entries were no longer made. It would-be interesting if we could determine to which one of our years the }ear corresponds in which the last entries w^ere made. The entries qf. material objects, of w^hose nature I shall speak directly, fill columns c and E. The last entries were made, as a glance at the manuscript shows, in the month Ochpaniztli of that 3^ear in vrhich the fejist Etzalqualiztli was celebrated on the day 3 Ehecatl. In this year, as 144 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 I have already stated above, the first day of the first month (accord- ing to the usual method of calculation) fell on the day 1 Calli. And this is precisely the year designated by the numeral B and the sign Calli, in xiuhtonalli ei calli, which corresponds to the year 1521 of our chronology, in which Quauhtemoc surrendered himself and the ruins of the city of Mexico to the victorious Cortes. The last entries of material objects in our manuscript were made on the feast Och- paniztli of that year, about 37 days after the fall of the city of Mexico. I shall now proceed to discuss the nature of these entries of material objects. They begin at the bottom of column c and for the first 28 squares are confined to this column alone. From the twenty-ninth square on other entries occur, which fill column d, and from the forty-fifth square on the last column, e, is also filled with entries. These entries doubtless record entrance duties or other revenues, which were payable quarterly in equal amounts. They embrace five classes of objects: (1) small square plates, which are always entered by tens; (2) oblong rectangular strips, which occur singly or in pairs; (3) narrow triangular strips, which oc- cur singly, in pairs, or in fours; (4) shallow bowls filled with some pow- dered substance, which are set down singly or in pairs, and (5) bundles of textiles or articles of clothing, Avhich also occur singly or in pairs. Fig. 32. Symbols of gold bars, plates, and All are painted in the Same brown- bowls of gold dust from Mexican codices. '1,11 i ish-yellow color, except that m class 4 the bowls are frequently distinguished by a darker greenish coloring from the yellow contents. The small number of articles of each class which were to be deliv- ered during the quarter leads to the supposition that they were articles of value. Indeed, I am of opinion that class 1 means bars of gold; classes 2 and 3, gold plates of special forms; class 4, bowls of gold dust; and class 5, woven coverlets and articles of clothing, which were also used as a medium of exchange, as money. Bars of gold (a and h, figure 32), gold plates (c, figure 32), and bowls of gold dust (d, figure 32) are enumerated in the tribute list and in the Mendoza codex among the tributes of the cities of Mixteca alta and baja : a is described as " tiles of fine gold, of the size of a plate and as thick as a man's thumb " ; & is called *' golden tiles, of the size of a consecrated wafer and the thickness of a man's finger " ; at c is shown " a small gold plate four fingers wide and three-fourths of an ell long, of the thickness of a sheet of parchment "; the symbols marked d represent ^' bowls (jicaras) of ^old dust". SELEK] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT T 145 As to the sum of the articles delivered during every quarter of a year, in the first twenty-eight quarters, during which entries were made only in column c, 10 gold bars, 2 square and 2 triangular gold plates, and 2 bowls of gold dust were delivered in every quarter. Beginning with the twenty-ninth quarter, that is, if our computa- tions given above be correct, beginning with the year 1511, there was a new payer of tribute, as it seems, the chieftain of a city, who is repre- sented in column e {rn, plate iv) at full length, with his name hiero- glyph and the hieroglyph of the city itself. In the principal column, c {n^ plate iv), the sum of the payments delivered every quarter is lessened by one long triangular plate; but, on the other hand, we find in column d plate iv), beginning with this square, entries for every quarter of a year consisting of a bundle of textiles, a square and a long triangular gold plate, and a bowl of gold dust. Beginning with the thirty-third square, in the year 1512, a second new tributary seems to have been added, the chieftain of the city of Zacatlan, who is also portrayed in column y. (q^ plate iv) at full length, with his name hieroglyph and the hieroglyph of his city. From this square onward, the amounts paid during ever}^ quarter are doubled in col- wmn D. There are 2 bundles of textiles, 2 oblong rectangular and 2 long triangular gold plates, and 2 bowls of gold dust. Beginning with the forty-fifth square, three years later (1515), we have a third new tributary, the chieftain of Tenanco, who is depicted in the corre- sponding section of column e (?', plate v) at full length, wdth his name hieroglyph and the hieroglyph of the city of Tenanco. After this section the amount of tribute paid in each quarter is increased by a bale of articles of clothing, 2 long triangular gold plates, and a bowl of gold dust, which are regularly entered in the fifth column, e. And finally, beginning with the sixtieth section, the month Tlacaxipeua- liztli of the year 1519, the last payments, those set down in column e (plate vi), are also doubled. This is the first section in column d in which a figure occurs. Thus the entries go on uniformly up to the seventieth section, the last in which entries were made. The question now arises. To whom were these regular quarterly payments made which are entered in columns c to e. At the outset, it should not be supposed that the name of the receiver of the tribute, whether a city, a king, or a temple, or whatever else, is given on the tribute list, for the entries Avere undoubtedly made on a list which was in the hands of the receiver of the tribute. Thus, in the well- known list of tribute paid to the kings of Mexico neither the kings nor the city of Mexico are mentioned. On the first page of the trib- ute list (Mendoza codex, page 19) the last Tlatelolcan kings are only mentioned incidentally, together with the contemporaneous Mexican monarchs. However, our manuscript is not a tribute list like those just 7238— No. 28—05 10 146 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 mentioned, Avhich enumerated the tribute to be paid by the various cities. Our manuscript is a cashbook, in which an account is kept of the receipts of the year. It is a kind of financial record, and as such naturally afforded opportunity for other historical entries. Be- sides the additions of new tributaries already mentioned these consist of the notices of deaths and of the successors of the deceased. Deaths are expressed in the manner usual in Mexican picture annals, by a mummy bundle, Avith a name hieroglyph, usually seated in a chair like a living person. Accession to office is expressed by the figure of the living person, with his name hieroglyph, seated according to his rank, either on a simple straw seat, or on the royal chair provided with a back; for omotlali, " he has taken his seat ", or motlatocatlali, " he has seated himself as a ruler ", are the expressions by which the Mexicans described accession to power. Where it is a question of actual rulers, authority is usually expressed by the little tongue in front of the mouth, which in Mexican paintings was a symbol of sj^eech; for tlahtouani, " he who speaks w^as the Mexican name for a ruler or king. The most important of these figures are undoubtedly those Avhich appear in column a, the first, counting from the right. For here, in a conspicuous place, we may expect to fiud the names and the dates of accession to power of those men who lived where these lists Avere pre- pared, and who were therefore the actual recipients of tlie tribute. It is important to note here that of the four figures of living persons who are portra3^ed in this column only the one in square 53 wears the xiuhuitzolli, the turquoise mosaic headband of secular rulers and nobles, and is characterized as of higher rank, as a king, by the straw seat with a back. The other three have the hair merely bound with a strap, their seat is without a back, and they bear on their backs, by a cord slung round the neck and knotted in front, a small yelloAv object flanked b}^ tAvo large gay tassels. This object is the so-called ie-quachtli, the " tobacco cloth ", a small pouch (taleguilla) , in which the priests carried the incense pellets. The cord AAuth the tassels, to Avhich the pouch is attached, is called mecacozcatl, " necklace of agave-fiber rope ". The little pouch is called ie-quachtli, " tobacco cloth ", because the incense pellets, which are called yaqualli and described as pills or pellets shaped like mouse droppings, were made of " tinta that is, probably of yauhtli, or iauhtli, " incense plant mixed Avith pulverized tobacco leaA^es con polvos de una yerba que ellos llaman yietl, que es como belenos de castilla (" with dust of an herb which they call yietl, Avhich is like henbane").* Tobacco « One meaning of the syllable iauh is " incense plant ". Compare Sahagun, v. 2, pp. 25, 35, and the hieroglyph of Yauhtepec in the Mendoza codex, v. 26, p. 14, But it also means "black": yaiih-tlaulli, " mayz moreno 6 negro" (Molina), " Sahagun, v. 2, p. 25. MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT I 147 played precisely the same part among the priests and medicine men of ancient Mexico as it has from the remotest times down to the present day among the varions savage tribes of North and South America. The tobacco pouch (ie-quachtli) or tobacco calabash (ie-tecomatl) was, therefore, the special badge of priests. I have brought together, in a to ^, figure 33, a number of figures of priests from the Mendoza codex and the still unpublished Aztec Sahagun manuscript of the Biblioteca del Palacio at Madrid, with incense basin and copal Fig. 33. Figures of priests from Mendoza codex and Saliagun manuscript. pouch, with sacrificial knife and copal pouch, and with the great rattle stick Chicauaztli in their hands, and upon the back of each is plainly to be seen the tobacco pouch or tobacco box (painted yellow or brown in the original) , between two large tassels. Only the priest's assistants, called " quacuilli who in i hold the victim by the arms and legs and in I bring down the burning billets of wood from the temple, are dressed differently, simply like messengers of death. Therefore, there can be no doubt that the figures drawn in column a 148 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 of our manuscript, in squares 16, 62, and 72, and the mummy bundle in square 60 are meant to represent the figures of priests. But it should be noted that the priests in our manuscript do not carry an ie-quachtli but an ie-tecomatl on their back, one of peculiar shape, with lateral projections which Avere probably made of gold. But while the prince drawn in section 53, column a, has no little tongue — the symbol of speech and of a ruler (tlahtouani) — before his mouth, the tongue is plainly to be seen before the mouth of the figures of priests in squares 16 and 22, which in the figure in square 62 has possibly only been blotted out by time or carelessly omitted, for the mumni}^ bundle in square 60 has the same name inscribed upon it as the living person in square 16. The priest in square 62 is, there- fore, the direct successor in office to the priest in square 16, designated by the little tongue as tlahtouani. F or this reason, and also because priests are chiefly represented in column a, I believe I may safely con- clude that it was a temple which received the valuable tribute recorded in columns c, d, and e. This also explains why, as I stated above, the pictures of princes and cities are given wherever the list records an increase in the amount of the tribute due every quarter. If trib- ute wrung from conquered cities by a king were recorded here, then, doubtless, the conquest of the city or the death of the king would be noted in the same place. That the temple of an idol was the recip- ient of the tribute very simply explains the fact that the entries must have ceased soon after the fall of the city of Mexico. But now where was the temple whose cashbook our manuscript represents? The answer ought to be found in the hieroglyphs which accompany the various figures represented in the manuscript; but un- fortunately these are not numerous enough, nor are all of them suffi- cientl}^ clear. I will proceed to discuss these hieroglyphs column by coluj))n; but I nuist observe at the outset that it is precisely in the hieroglyphs that Kingsborough's draftsman has made many mistakes, both in drawing and color. In column a, square 16, the name hieroglyph introduced behind the head of the figure shows a cloth, which is apparently held up by two hands. The cloth is painted white, the hands yellowish brown. The hieroglyph seems to refer to an act which we see represented several times in the Zapotec Vienna codex and also in the Mayan Troano codex (see h and c, figure 34), which is the tying on of the shoulder cloth; possibly, also, its exhibition, presentation, or offering for sale. In the Manuscrit Mexicain number 3 of the Bibliotheque Nationale at Paris there is a hieroglyph (/^, figure 34), which shows a shoulder cloth and a hand. It represents the name of a citizen of Uexotzinco who is set down as among those who, escaping, withdrcAV from the control of the encomenderos and the curas, and bears the legend "Andres Tilmat- laneuh that is, "Andrew, the cloth-lender c I MEXICAN PAINTING BULLETIN 28 PLATE V .DT FRAGMENT I, PART 4 seler] MEXICAN PICTUKE WRITINGS — FRAGMENT I 149 In square 52, column a, is seen a hieroglyph behind the niiunmy bundle, consisting of a stalk painted bluish-green, holding a red object, from the left side of which hangs another object painted yel- low. This is probably meant for an ear of corn with its bunch of silk hanging at one side. The name of the person whose death is announced here should therefore be read Xilotl, or Cacamatl, young ear of corn **. /3J Fig. 84. Symbols of cloth and precious stones. His successor, in square 53, decorated with the princely headband, is designated by a hieroglyph painted yellow, which I can not interpret with any certainty. The mummy bundle, in square 60 of column a, has the same name hieroglyph as the figure in square 16. Apparently the death of the same person is here announced whose entrance into office is proclaimed in square 16. 150 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 His successor, in square G2, has for his name hieroglyph a single bead drawn on a strap. This is probably to be read Chalchiuh. The principal precious stones among the Mexicans were the chal- chiuitl, which comprised jadeite and other stones of a similar green color, and xiuitl, the " turquoise ". Both were represented hieroglyph- ically as lustrous bodies, like the brilliantly polished mirror tezcatl (marcasite or obsidian), with eyes at the four corners, that is, send- ing out rays in four directions. The forms d to /, figure 34, represent chalchiuitl; /, xiuitl; and tezcatl. The chalchiuitl was preferred for necklaces (cozcatl), beads, and bracelets (macuextli) because tur- quoise (xiuitl) Avas too valuable, and was not found in such large pieces. Turquoise was used especially for incrustations and mosiacs. The precious ear pegs (xiuhnacochtli) , the diadems of the Mexican kings (xiuhuitzolli) , were made of turquoise mosaic. AVlien, instead of the hieroglyphs for chalchiuitl and xiuitl, the object itself was drawn, the word xiuitl was rej^resented by an incrusted disk, m, and the AYord chalchiuitl by one or two strung beads, as Ave see it in //. and ^, Avhich are taken from a Historia Mexicana of the Aubin-Goupil col- lection (Goupil-Boban Atlas, plates GO, 59). The form li stands for the chalca tribe, Avhich is designated by the hieroglyph chalchiuitl, in a corresponding representation in the Boturini codex, published in the Kingsborough collection. The form i expresses the name of one of the four barrios of Aztlan, Avhich is also to be read Chalco. On the lienzo of Tlaxcala the toAvn of Chalco is also designated by a large ]jead. Comparison Avitli these figures places it, I think, beyond a doubt, that the hieroglyph in square 62 of column a is likewise to be read Chalchiuh. Of the persons in column a there still remains the one in square 72. The name hieroglyph is plainly a shield, but there Avas something else above it Avhich can no longer be deciphered, as only a few rem- nants of blue paint are left of it. Possibly there Avas a blue royal headband above it, in Avhich case it Avould have to be read Chimalte- cuhtli. A man by this name, chieftain of Calixtlahuacan, is men- tioned in the Anales de Chimalpahin in the year 1484. Finally, there is still the hieroglyph of a place, section 68 in column a. ArroAvs are draAvn flying toAvard it or sticking into it. This is probably meant to signify the conquest of that place. The hieroglyph consists of the Avell-knoAvn drawing of a mountain (tepetl), of a string of beads laid around its summit (cozcatl, " neck- lace "), and a number of objects on the top of the mountain Avhich I can not explain Avith any degree of certainty. The object which forms the actual pinnacle of the mountain is painted brown, and ol)lique stripes are plainly visible, between Avhich the color seems to be darker. This may therefore possibly represent the hieroglyph of stone (tetl). The square body above it is ^^ainted black. This seler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS— FRAGMENT T 151 may, perhaps, be intended for a piece of obsidian (iztli). Accord- ing to this, we have itz-te-cozca-tepe as elements of the hieroglyph; but 1 can not construct any place name known to me out of these elements. I will now pass on to columns d and e. In d we have in square 60 the mummy bundle and a hieroglyph which in the Kingsborough drawing is absolutely incompre- hensible, but which in the orig- inal, and also in our reproduc- tion, can be recognized, with some difficulty, to be sure, as the head of a beast of prey with outstretched tongue. We should read this Ocelotl, " jaguar ". A seated figure then follows, in square 61, whose head is not adorned Avith the royal head- band, the xiuhuit3olli,and whose lontr hair hangs down behind, wound round with a strap, after the manner of priests. A cac- tus branch is behind it, by way of name hieroglyph. Cactus branches, with the blossoms, often occur in the register of names of persons of Uexotzinco and Xaltepetlapan (Manuscrit Mexicain number 3, Bibliothe- que Nationale, Paris), shown in figure 85 (<2, 1 to 5) . There they denote the name Nochuetl, which is also frequently mentioned in the Anales of Chimalpahin. A cactus branch in conjunction with an arrow is likewise used there to represent the name Tziuac mitl, h. It seems, there- fore, that a variety of cactus was meant by Tziuactli, or tzinuactli. This name, too, which likewise occurs in the Anales of Chimalpa- hin, might be expressed by the hieroglyph in square 61, column d (plate vi). In the hieroglyph which accompanies the mummy bundle, in square 64, column d (plate vi), I think I recognize the head of a deer and an upright tuft of feathers. The deer is mazatl, and the upright tuft of feathers should probabl}^ be read quetzalli. According to this we Fig Symbols of personal and place names in Mexican codices. 152 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 should have mazaqiietzal, and this is a royal name well known from the Anales of Chimalpahin, that is, in the territories of Chalco, Tlalmanalco, and Amaquemecan. The next figure in column d, square 65, is described by a hieroglyph which is obviously the picture of a snake. The head is above on the left, and is white. The forked tongue protruding from the mouth is plainly visible. The body is painted yellow. A rattle seems to be drawn at the end of the tail, which is left white like the head. The name might therefore be read Coatl, " snake '\ Finally, in column e, as already stated, in sections 29, 33, and 44 (plates IV and v), three chieftains are drawn, with their name hiero- glyphs and the hieroglyphs of the cities ruled by them. The hieroglyph of the city in square 29 shows us a mountain (tepetl) which seems to be formed of streams of water moving in a circle. A mountain of w^ater might be read Atepec. A city is recorded by this name in the Mendoza codex, page IG, among the con- quests of the 3^ounger Motecuhzoma, and is expressed there by the drawing of a mountain with a stream of water on it (^, figure 35). In Mexican hieroglyphs of towns, however, a mountain often serves merely to show that reference is made to a place or a place name, that is, to express the syllable co or can ; compare, for instance, the hiero- glyphs of the cities of Aztaquemecan, Quauacan, Quauhyocan, Chicon- quiauhco, and Nepopoalco, from the Mendoza codex {c to g), and those of Tzompanco (A), Tlacopan, Toltitlan, etc., from the Osuna codex. If we take this into consideration, then, since the water in our hieroglyph in square 29 is apparently drawn moving in a circle, we should perha23S read it Almoyauacan, " where the water moves in a circle ". This is the name of an ancient village which is mentioned, after Uexotzinco and Xaltepetlapan, with their barrios (calpulli) and the persons belonging to them in the Manuscrit Mexicain number 3 of the Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. There (k) the water flowing in a circle is much more plainly drawn than in our hieroglyph. But since, as we shall see, both the succeeding hieroglyphs also refer to territories adjacent or friendly to Uexotzinco, I think it quite prob- able that the place hieroglyph in square 29, column e, should be read Almoyauacan. The chieftain of the place is designated hieroglyphically by the head of a jaguar. His name must therefore have been Ocelotl, or Tequan, " beast of prey ". The place which is meant to be designated in square 33 (plate iv) is represented by a bush painted bluish green. Unfortunately, this hieroglyph is also open to various readings. The Mexicans expressed the word zacatl, " grass by a similar bush (see in the Mendoza codex the place names Zacatlan, Zacatepec, and Zacatollan, shown in a, 6, and , Avhich occurs seler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT II 157 on the great so-called calendar stone in the upper left-hand triangular space, is meant for a hieroglyph of Motecuhzonia, as is often assumed. Here the xiuhtzontli is combined with the breastplate of the fire god. In a corresponding place on the other three triangular spaces are the dates," 1 Tecpatl, 1 Quiauitl, 7 Ozomatli, which appear also to denote certain deities. I think that King Motecuhzonia took his name from one of the cognomens of the fire god; for el sehor enojado, " the angry god which is the meaning of the name Mote- cuhzonia, is a fit title for the god of devouring fire. I think I dis- tinctly recognize the hieroglyph of the younger Motecuhzoma in which occurs on the inner side of the cover of a cinerary casket, which bears on the outer side (the top) the date 11 Tecpatl. Penafiel repro- duced this casket in his " Monumentos del arte mexicano ", and regarded the hieroglyph as that of King Nezaualpilli, of Tetzcoco, said to have died in the year 11 Tecpatl, or A. D. 1516. But, in the first place, the year of Nezahualpilli's death has never been precisely determined. According to Chimalpahin, he died a year earlier, in the year 10 Acatl, or A. D, 1515. Furthermore, the hieroglyph has absolutel}^ no connection with the elements of the name Nezaualpilli. On the contrary, all the elements contained in the name Motecuh- zoma seem to be expressed in this figure. The royal headband gives us the element tecuh, " prince The little tongue (symbol of speech) with clouds of smoke rising from it seems to express the element mo- zonia, " angry fiery speech, as it were. And finally, the element with which Ave became familiar in the hieroglyphs k and /, and Avhich we also see in the hieroglyph of our manuscript, is plainly contained here, and represents the idea of xocoyotla. Opposite the figure of Motecuhzoma in our manuscript is the pic- ture of a hut built of reeds, called xacalli in Mexican, or jacal, as they still say in Mexico. The circle below probably refers to the place wdiich is here meant, but I can not explain it more fully. As for the location itself, there is no place by the name of Camaca given on more recent maps, and I have sought for it in vain on the older ones. On the map which accompanies the text of the Conquistador anonimo published by Ramusio," there seems to be the only hint of it. This is probably based on the first map that was made from the one officially sent in b}^ Cortes. It differs from the latter, however, inas- much as the fresh-water lake, which on Cortes's map is shoAvn in very much contracted dimensions on the left of the sheet, is repeated independently on a larger scale on the upper part of the sheet.^ Upon this map, exactly as on that of Cortes, two forked causeways are given on the north side of the town, which is, however, incorrectly " Ramusio, Delle navigationi et viaggi, v. 3, Venice, 1556 ; Garcia Icazbalceta, Docu- mentos ineditos para la historia de Mexico, v. 1, p. 390. ^Dahlgren, " Nagot om det forna och nuvarande Mexico" (Yraer, No. 1, 1889). 158 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 designated by the author as the west side. One of these causeways leads to the left toward Azcapotzalco. The other runs back of the fork due north. Where this causeway reaches the mainland the name Calmacam is written down. Of course, it is doubtful whether we are justified in connecting this name with the Camaca on our fragment II, for on the map of Alonzo de Santa Cruz, of the year 1555,« the name Caltlitlan appears in about the same place. Never- theless, I am inclined to think that there was a boundary line in this region, that is, northward from Azcapotzalco toward Guadalupe. Azcapotzalco was the first of the cities subdued by Mexico, and it is expressly stated that the lands of Azcapotzalco were divided among themselves by the nobles of Mexico, the king taking the lead. There are, in fact, fertile farm lands at the base of the mountain, traversed by streams of water which come down from Tliliuhyacan, Tlalne- pantla, and Atizapam. The water drawn on the left side of the frag- ment may be the seashore, and the road running along the right side may be the one Avhich ran along the southern base of the mountains of Tenayocan and Guadalupe. Lastly, on the right side of our fragment, outside the path, there is drawn a figure which seems to represent a kind of box provided with a mecapalli, the broad band of woven straw which was placed across the forehead, by means of which the burden resting on the back was carried. Perhaps this was meant to symbolize agricultural imple- ments. Above the figure of Motecuhzoma, as I have said, runs the drawing of a path. The figures seen on this and on the path at the right are very realistic reproductions of the imprint of a bare foot, the sole and the five toes, in sand or other light soil. These footprints are gen- erally used in Mexican hieroglyphic writing to denote a path, travel- ing over a path, or journeying or moving in a certain direction. I will designate the separate divisions or sections above this cross path, i^roceeding from below upward, by the figures 1 to 27. Divi- sions T and 8 are the most important. In division 7 there is above a hieroglyph, which I will describe later with the others. Beside it is the hieroglyph and the head, adorned with the royal headband, of the brave Quauhtemoc, upon whom the Mexicans conferred the office of king, that is, chief military commander, after the death of Cui- tlauac. Motecuhzoma and Cuitlauac were sons of Axayacatl, the sixth king of the Mexicans. Quauhtemoc was a son of Ahuitzotl, eighth king of Mexico, and the power was conferred upon him although there were nearer heirs. In Mexico birth only partially influenced succession to the throne, as also to the other high offices of state. It is Avell known how heroically Quauhtemoc defended the » Nordenskiold, Facsimile Atlas, p. 109, and Dahlgren, work cited, p. 10, seler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT II 159 city of Mexico for 90 days against Cortes, in spite of European mili- tary science. His capture, ^Yhich took place on the date ce Coatl yei Calli, or August 13, 1521 (discussed in the previous chapter), put an end to the war. Cortes at first treated him kindl3% but later (accord- ing to a marginal note in Chimalpahin it must have happened on the da}^ 1 Ocelotl, that is, as we reckon it, IGO days later, about the end oi the year 1521) sent him and four other influential Mexicans prisoners to Coyouacan and strove to extort from them by torture information as to where were hidden the treasures which the Spaniards had to q r H t u Fig. 37. Mexican symbols of persons and places. leave behind in Mexico the year previous at the time of their flight. Quauhtemoc was afterward baptized and named for his godfather Don Hernando de Alvarado Quauhtemoctzin. Cortes appointed him gobernador of Mexico, but afterward had him hanged on sus- picion of conspiracy, together with Tetlepanquetzatzin and Couana- cochtzin, the kings of Tlacopan and Tetzcoco. This happened in the year 1524 at Ueimollan during the expedition to Honduras. " He died in some sort like a Christian " (ye yuhqui ye christianoyotica momiquilli), says Chimalpahin. "A cross was put into his hand, his 160 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 feet were bound together with iron chains, and by these they hung him to a ceiba tree". The execution is represented on page 138 of Codex Vaticanus A; but there he is represented as hanged by the neck in the usual way. From Chimalpahin's words, however, it would seem as though he had been cruell}^ hung up by the feet. The hieroglyph of Quauhtemoc, " swooping eagle ", is represented in section 7 of our manuscript by the head of an eagle and a foot- print directed downward. In the Sahagun manuscript of the Academia de la Historia it is represented by an entire eagle flying downward {d 1, figure 37). In Codex Vaticanus A, plates 137 and 138, we also have a swooping eagle and footprints directed down- ward {d 2 and d 3, same figure). The remark added in the following division, the eighth of our manuscript, apparently by the same hand which entered the other names and remarks, also refers to Quaiihtemoc's death. In order to read the words the fragment must be turned upside down. In this division we have two large circles and one small one, filled with an irregular network of lines and painted blue. These are hiero- glyphs of the xiuitl, " turquoise ", a word which, as I stated above, is fre(piently expressed by a small disk of turquoise mosaic (see m, figure 35). But the word xiuitl means not only "turquoise", but also " grass ", " comet ", and " year ". It is used here in the last sense, for the litth^ flag over the two large circles means " 20 ". The two large circles and one small circle together, therefore, give us 41 years. Accordingly, there is written below them hon poval xivitl oce axca, "(it is) now 41 years". Besides the number at the left is 7 Calli, "7 house"; that is, the year 1524, the 3^ear of Quauhtemoc's death. To the right, beside the number, is 8 Calli, "8 house"; that is, the year 1565, which is more fully explained by the accompanying words: (the numeral is not distinctly legible) del mes de abril 1565 anos (" on the — of April of the year 1565 "). From the year 1524 to the year 1565 there are actually 41 years. The year 1565, in Avhich this note was added, had a certain sig- nificance foi- the descendants of the ancient royal family of Mexico, as in that year Don Luis de Santa Maria Nanacacij:)actzin died. He was the son of Acamapichtli and grandson of Ahuitzotl, who was the eiirhth kinof of Mexico. He was the last descendant of the ancient royal family, and was still nominally recognized as regent (gober- 'nador) of Mexico under Spanish rule : " Yehuatl oytech tlamico ynic Mexica Tenucha tlacopipiltin ", says Chimalpahin. This year, therefore, marks the actual end of the ancient royal family, and for this reason Chimalpahin here adds a sketch of the entire ancient history of the city of Mexico and of the Mexican race. We read « that « Chimalpahin, Seventh Relation, pp. 194, 195. selkr] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS — FRAGMENT II 161 when the city of Mexico surrendered to the victorious Cortes after the capture of Quauhtenioc, the chiefs of tiie Mexicans were assem- bled at Acachinanco. They were the following: (1) Quauhtenioc- tzin, King of Mexico (tlahtohuani Tenuchtitlan) ; (2) Tlacotzin, cihuacohuatl, that is, the King's deputy; (3) Oquiztzin, Prince of Azcapotzalco (tlahtohuani Azcapotzalco-Mexicapan) ; (4) Panitzin (or Ilanitzin), Prince of Ehcatepec (tlahtohuani Ehcatepec) ; (5) Motelchiuhtzin, the keeper of the royal stores (calpixqui), not a man of royal blood, but a great war chief (amo pilli, yn yece huey yaotiacauh catca). Cortes had them put in chains and taken as prisoners to Coyouacan. The same four men who are mentioned here with Quauhtemoc are mentioned again in the same order in the account of Quauhtemoc's execution and that of the other two at Ueymollan: Cenca yc tlao- coxque, motequi-j^achoque, quichoquillique, yn quinhuicac Mexica tlahtoque (" The princes of Mexico, who had been brought hither, were deeply moved and wept for him Their names are given as Don Juan Velazquez Tlacotzin, cihuacohuatl, Don Carlos Oquiztzin, Don Andres Motelchiuhtzin, and Don Diego de Alvarado Huanitzin. There is still another native account of events that happened during the siege and after the taking of the city of Mexico. This is the account preserved in the Sahagun manuscript of the Biblioteca Ijorenziana, which forms the tv/elfth book of the worli. It is stated there that on the day after Quauhtemoc's capture he and all the dignitaries Avere taken to Cortes at Atactzinco, to the house of the tlacochcalcatl Coyoueuetzin. Here, directly after Quauhtemoc, are named Coana- cochtli and Tetlepanquetzatzin, the kings of Tetzcoco and Tlacopan, and then the following men of high rank: (1) cioacoatl Tlacutzin; (2) tlillancalqui Petlauhtzin; (3) vitznavatl Motelchiuhtzin, mexi- catl achcauhtli; (4) tecutlamacazqui (" high priest ") Coatzin; (5) tlatlati (*' steward ") Tlacolyautl. When the princes came before Cortes, the three kings of the allied cities of Mexico, Tetzcoco, and Tlacopan took their seats beside Cortes. Then follow inixcoatlailotlac Auelitoctzin and tlatzacutica yopicatl Pupucatzin pilli, who, as a comparison with previous pas- sages shows, are to be regarded as leaders of the Tlatelolcas. And then we read : On the other side sat the Tenochcas ". Their names are given as Tlacutzin, Petlauhtzin, Motelchiuhtzin mexicatl achcauhtli, tecutlamacazqui Coatzin, and tlatati Tlacolyautl. These names are mentioned repeatedly on previous pages of the narrative. If we compare the two accounts, that of Chimalpahin and the one in the Sahagun manuscript, Ave must at the outset discard the last tAVo persons named in the Sahagun narrative, for the}^ are priests. Of the other three, two are identical with two of those mentioned by 7238— No. 28—05 11 162 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 Chimalpaliin. The difference between the two narratives apparently can be explained by the fact that in the Anales of Chinialpahin we have in the beginning an account of the intervicAv held with the Mexi- can princes immediately after the surrender of the city, while the list which then follows does not mention the princes present at this inter- view, but those whom Cortes afterward sent as prisoners to Coyouacan and put to the torture in order to wring confessions from them in regard to the treasures left behind by the Spaniards in their flight from the city. If we now return to our manuscript we see that in divisions 5, 3, 2, and 1, below Quauhtemoc, the same four men are named whom Chi- malpahin mentions as Quauhtemoc's companions; but the order of succession is somewhat changed, for, whilst we must always think of Tlacotzin as occupying the first place, Oquiztzin must be in the fourth place here instead of tlie second, as in Chinialpahin. The four persons, like those named in the other divisions, are ex- pressed in our manuscript by a head with the name hieroglyph behind it. Besides Avhich a scribe, Avho, as we have seen, made his entries in the year 1565, has added the names of the persons in writing. Here, as elsewhere, the heads serve to show the rank of the person designated. In our manuscript, Uanitzin and Oquiztzin, who are named above as kings of Elicatepec and Azcapotzalco, have the royal headband of turquoise mosaic, like Motecuhzoma and Quauhtemoc. These two alone of the four have the little tongue before their mouth, the symbol of speech and also of power. Von Humboldt was of the opinion that the Mexicans intended to designate persons as living by the addition of this little tongue. That this is not the case liere is obvious, for Oquiztzin died earlier than the three others, and Mote- cuhzoma, who also has the little tongue, earlier than any of the four and before Quauhtemoc, who is represented without the little tongue. Apparently the tongue is meant here as the direct hieroglyph for tlahtouani, the one who speaks or the lord '', " the king ", a pen- dant, as it were, to the royal headband. The third of the four, Motelchiuh, who was described above as a war chief, is represented by the peculiar manner of wearing the hair which was a distinguisliing mark of warriors. Sahagun tells us (App., chapter 5) that Avhen warriors adorned themselves for the dance they bathed, covered their whole bodies, except the face, with black color, and painted their faces with black stripes, and that in- stead of combing their hair " they made it stand on end to give them- selves a terrible aspect ". There were two different ways, as the pic- tures show, in which it Avas customary to arrange the hair on these occasions. One was to draw the hair together on the crown and wind round it a leather strap, to which, on gala occasions, large tassels of ornamental feathers were fastened, while the rest of the hair, as it SELKUl MKXT(^\N riCTURK WRITINCJS FKAGMKNT 11 108 seems, stood out short and stiff all around the face. It is worn thus by the figures of warriors in the Mendoza codex (see /. figure 1^7) and on the head of Yacatecuhtli, the god of traveling merchants and caraA^an leaders, in the Sahagun manuscript of the Biblioteca del Palacio, 7n. This n)anner of wearing the hair was called temillotl, stone-pillar hair dress and the great tassels were called quet- zallalpiloni, " ornamental feather band The name temillo, " wear- ing the stone-pillar hair dress (warrior's hair dress)", occurs fre- quently in the list of names from Uexotzinco (Manuscrit Mexicain number Bibliotheque Xationale), already mentioned several times, and is represented there sometimes by the figure of a pillar, some- times by a stone or a stone in a setting, or, finally, by a stone in con- nection with a head of dressed hair (see ii, figure 87). In the other manner of wearing the hair it was made to stand up high over the forehead and allowed to hang down from the crown of the head over the neck, where it was Avound by a strap, into which a feather orna- ment was stuck on gala occasions. This fashion is shown in the pic- ture of a chieftain arrayed for the dance, c, which in Codices Telleri- ano-lvemensis and A^aticanus A designates the feast Tecuilhuitl, and in the drawing of the head of Tlacochcalco yaotl in the Saha- gun manuscript in the Biblioteca del Palacio, p. The chieftains of the Tlaxcaltecs are also draAvn Avith this hair dress on the lienzo of Tlaxcala, in the representation of the festiA^ties which the republic of Tlaxcala prepared for the reception of the conqueror Cortes, Avhom they hailed as their ally. This manner of Avearing the hair Avas called tzotzocolli, and the feather ornament stuck into the strap, consisting of a furcated plume of heron feathers, was called aztaxelli.^ In q I give a picture from the Sahagun manuscript in the Biblioteca del Palacio, in Avhich Avarriors are represented executing a dance at the feast of Ochpaniztli, Avhere these tAvo modes of Avear- ing the hair are to be seen side by side, distinctly draAvn. The former, the temillotl, is the distinguishing mark of the actual chief- tains, the tequiua. Motelchiuli, the great Avar chief, is therefore represented Avith it in division 3 of our manuscript (plate aii). Finall}^, Tlacotzin, in division 5 (counting from the loAver path), ]»as neither the royal headband nor the chieft^^in's hair dress, but is represented simply Avith hair hanging straight doAvn, Avithout any insignia whatever. He Avas draAvn Avithout the royal headband, because at that time he Avas prol)ably not yet in possession of the royal poAver Avhich Avas aftei'wai'ds conferred upon him. Xor Avas the warrior's hair dress appro] )ri ate to him, because the title ciua- couatl, Avhich he bore, Avas api)arently not a military one. I Avill mention, hoAA^ever, that aboA^e Tlacotzin, in division 6, there Avas « A'eroffentlichnngen aus dem Koni.Lilicheii Museum fiir A^iHke/'kunde, v. 1, p. 140. * Veroffentlichungen aus dem K(3nigliclien Museum I'ur A' olkerkunde, v. 1, p. 166. 164 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 painted a head with the royal headband like Quauhtenioc, but that this has been pasted over ; that is, expunged. As for the hieroglyphs, there are two in division 5 with Tlacotzin, which, however, do not both refer to the name. The first one seems rather to express the title and the second the name of the man. The latter represents an implement, a sort of wooden shovel which was used to work the ground, but also served to shovel earth, lime, etc. (see t and u). The former is taken from the Mendoza codex. Above is the tool, below the basket (chiquiuitl) , in which the earth, lime, etc., was transported, with the broad carrying strap (mecapalli) to be placed over the forehead. In taken from the Osuna codex, is shown the Mexican laborer using this tool, the name of which is uictli, or coauacatl. In our manuscript it serves to express the name Tlacotzin because it was the symbol of servitude or bondage, of slave labor. The serf, the slave, was called tlacohtli. A tlacotl, somewhat differently pronounced, with the vowel short in the first syllable, meant the blossoming bough, an example of which is depicted in the hieroglyph Tlacopan (Tacuba). As in the present case the name Tlacotzin is expressed by a tool, we may conclude that the first pronunciation (with the long a) and also the first meaning- belonged to it. The first hieroglyi)h shows the picture of a snake with open jaws holding a human face. The snake is painted yellow, excepting the rattles and belly, the human face brown, and on the cheek there seem to be traces of the tAvo stripes which are almost invariably drawn in the hieroglyphs of the Mendoza codex when a female face is to be expressed (see )\ figure 37. the hieroglyph Ciuathm, from the Men- doza codex, volume 40. page 1). The first hieroglyph in division 5 is therefore the exact reproduction of the word ciuacouatl, " female snake ", the title, which it is stated by Chimalpahin and in the Saha- gun manuscript Avas borne by the Tlacotzin mentioned here. The title ciuacouatl belonged to the highest dignitar}^ in the realm, who was in a certain sense the colleague or deputy of the king ( tlahtouani) . This fact is so often and emphatically repeated in Tezozomoc's CrcSnica mexicana that it is natural to suspect intention and to conclude that the power claimed by the ciuacouatl was not always recognized by the king. In general, the colleagueship was plainly and clearly enough established. When in the narrative of the deeds of the elder Motecuhzoma,Tlacaelel, ciuacouatl of that period, makes a suggestion, Motecuhzoma ansAvers that he agrees to everything, " for indeed I am the master; but I can not order cA^erything, and you, ciuacoatl, are as much master as I am ; Ave must both govern the Mexican state The name ciuacouatl has several meanings. It means " female snake ", but it may also signify " female tAvin or " female companion". The name probably refers to the ancient earth goddess, who, in different RELRR] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT II places, was called variously Ciiuicoatl, " the snake woman Ton- antzin, " our dear mother or Teteo innan, " mother of the gods and who was to the father, the ancient god of heaven, exactly what the ciuacouatl Avas to the king in the earthly realm of the Mexican commonwealth. I give in s a painting of this goddess corresponding exactly to the one in our hieroglyph. It occurs on plate 08 of the Goupil-Bohan atlas, and there denotes Ciuacoatl, tlie goddess of Colhuacan, to whom Mexican prisoners are being sacrificed. Motelchiuh means the despised "\ The hieroglyph whicli here ex- presses this name is the well-known hieroglyph te-tl, stone which is painted in brown and black, to express the various colors or the veining of stone. Of course, this hieroglyph is only an ajjproxima- tion of the sound which it is actually intended to represent. It is not impossible that there is some etymologic connection, tliougli only an indirect one, between the words te-tl, " stone and tel-chiua, " to despise Besides, Motelchiuh is designated also in the Sahagun manuscript of the Acadeniica de la Historia in precisely the same way; that is, \)y tlie hieroglyph te-tl stone " (t, figure 87). Uanitzin, division 2, is hieroglyphically denoted by tlie flag (pamitl). p, b, and w are all kindred sounds, and our (German) w, or, more correctly, the English w, is the sound which the old gram- marians intended to express by u or v, and the Jesuits by hu. It seems to be only an error when Chimalpahin occasionally writes Panitzin instead of Iluanitzin; that is, Uanitzin. ITanitl is also de- noted by a small flag in the Sahagun manuscript of the Academia de la Historia (<7, figure 37). Lastl}^, Oquiztli, in the first division above the lower path, is simply described by the hieroglyph of the city Azcapotzalco, wdiose ruler he was. Azcapotzalco means " in the place of the ant-hills ". The city is therefore hieroglyphically expressed by the picture of an nnt-hill (see a and the former taken from the Mendoza codex, the latter from a record preserved in the library of the Duke of Osuna). Here we see in the midst of small pebbles and grains of sand a crea- ture, usually painted red and of a somewhat exaggerated shape, which is intended to represent an ant (azcatl). I will now state briefly what is known concerning the subsequent fate of the four 2:>ersons whom Chimalpahin mentions as companions of Quauhtemoc, the last free king of Mexico, and who in our manu- script are set down in due order underneath Qmiulitemoc. Tlacotzin seems to have been a grandson of Ahuitzotl, the eighth king of the Mexicans." He was therefore a near relative of Quauhte- " See Anales de Chimalpahin, Seventh Relation, ed. Remi Simeon, p. 266, where the yxhuiuhtzin inyn, " the grandson cf rhe previous one can hardly refer to anyone bnt the previously mentioned .Ahuitzotl. 166 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 moc, who was a son of Ahuitzotl. This probably explains the high position as ciuacouatl, which he held with and under Quauhtemoc. He took a very energetic part in the defense of the city of Mexico, according to the Aztec account preserved in the Sahagun manu- script of the Biblioteca Lorenziana, which Avas probably Avritten by an eyewitness who was shut up in the beleaguered city with him. Tlacotzin is mentioned there with tlillancalqui Petlauhtzin and uitz- nauatl Motel chiuhtzin, and these three, as leaders of the Tenochcas, are placed opposite tlacateccatl Temilotzin and tlacochcalcatl Coyo- ueuetzin, the leaders of the Tlatek)lcas, the inhabitants of the sister city of Tenochtitlan. After the conquest he, too, was baptized, and was then called Don Juan Velasquez Tlacotzin. After the execution of Quauhtemoc and his companions at ITeymoHan, Cortes made him King of Mexico (thihtohuani mocliiuh yn TiMiochhtlan) and equipped him like a Spaniard, presenting him Avith a sword, a dagger, and a white horse." Tlacotzin, however, was not destined to enter his native city as King. After having been absent for nearly three years with Cortes on the expedition to Honduras, Avhich was one of hard- ships and privations, he died on the homeward journey, in 1526, at Nochiztlan. Of Motek'hiuh it has ah'eady been stated that he Avas not a prince of the blood, but had won his rank by distinguishing himself in Avar. In the passage from Chimali)ahin quoted above he is mentioned Avith the title calpixqui, " keeper of the royal stores ". This Avas the name given to the governors of sul)jugated proA'inces, Avhose chief duty it Avas to collect the tribute and convey it to the royal storehouses. In the Aztec account in the Sahagun manuscript he is called uitznauatl and mexicatl achcauhtli. The latter means simply " Mexican Avar chief. The former is one of the many military titles Avhich Avere in use among the Mexicans, the actual meaning of Avhich has not yet been determined. They probably referred to a ])articular gens (cal- pulli) and to its temple. xVfter the concjuest of the city Motelchiuh Avas also baptized, like the other noble Mexicans, and Avas named for his godfather, Don Andres de Tapia Motelchiuh. We also see Thapia Motelchiuh Avritten in our manuscript. After Tlacotzin's death at Nochiztlan, Motelchiuh Avas appointed his successor, but, as he Avas not a prince of the blood, actual royal dignity, the title tlahtouani, could not be conferred on him. I feel convinced that Cortes took this opportunity to someAvhat degrade the dignity. He is therefore merely mentioned as a war chief of Mexico (Zan quauhtlahtohuani omochiuh Tenuchtitlan) , but Ave learn nothing of his activity in this capacity. He, too, ruled but a fcAV years and died in the year 1530, during an expedition to the provinces of the northAvest (Teo-culhua- can, the province of Jalisco), Avhere he Avas serving in the Spanish « See Anales de Cliimalpahin, Seventh Relation, ed. Remi Simeon, p. 207. seler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT II 167 army under Nnfio de Guzniiin. AVhile bathing in the neighborhood of xVztathin he was struck by the arrow of a Chichimec, a hostile Indian, and died of the w^ound." Uanitzin was a ne})hew of the Iving Motecuhzonia. Hi;^ father, whose name w^as Tezozomoctli Acohiauacatl, was an ehler brother of Motecuhzoma. Motecuhzonia was cA^entually called to the throne as the successor of his father, Axayacatl, by the choice of those who had the ap2)ointing power. But, according to a passage of unusual ethno- logic interest in the annals of Chimalpahin, Tezozomoctli inherited the dance yaociuacuicatl from Axayacatl, Avho bought it of the Tlailotlaque, a tribe of the Chalca, whose property it seems to have been. Uanitzin's mother belonged to the house of the princes of Ehcatepec, a place lying north of Mexico, at the northern base of the mountains of Guadalupe, near the lake of Xaltocan. In the year 1519, shortly before the arrival of the Spaniards, when Motecuhzoma had' somewhat recovered from the extreme consternation into which he had been throw^n by the first neAvs of the appearance of the Spaniards, Uanitzin was installed by his uncle as ruler of Ecatepec, which belonged to him as his mother's heir. According to Chimalpahin, Uanitzin Avas at that time 20 years old. lie seems to have taken no special part in the fighting during the siege. The Aztec account in the Sahagun manuscript of the l^iblioteca Lorenziana does not men- tion him; but Chimalpahin states, as I have quoted above, that he was one of the Mexicans of high rank Avho were taken with Quauhte- moc as prisoners to Coyouacan. Cortes had so much regard for his descent (or for his youth?) that he did not have him put in chains like the others. After the princes w-ere released from prison his mother immediately took him with her to Ehcatepec; as Chimalpahin says, she concealed him there (ca ompa quitlatito yn inantzin Ehcatepec), and the people of Ehcatepec recognized him as their king (ynic ompa quintlahtocatlallique no yehuantin Ehcatepeca). As a Christian he bore the name of Don Diego de Alvarado Uanitzin. After Motelchiuh's death in the year 1530 the throne of Mexico was for a time unoccupied. After the return from Teocolhuacan, wdiich occurred in 1532, the office of chieftain was conferred on a certain Xochiquentzin, who also Avas not a prince of the blood (ynin ga no Mexica amo pilli), but had only been a large landowner (yece huel chane catca Mexico) and had held the office of a calpixqui, " a keeper of the royal stores " under the old kings. His house Avas in Calpul Teopan, the southeastern quarter of the city of Mexico, called already at that time the barrio of San Pablo. Xochiquentzin died, however, in the year 1536. The viceroy, Don Antonio de Mendoza, who had arrived in Mexico the year before, at first hesitated to fill the « Chimalpahin, pp. 200, 222, 26G. 168 BUKEAU OF AMEBICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 post again; but, in pursuance of his efforts to regulate the relations between the natives and the Spaniards, he found it advisable again to give a chief to the Indian population of the capital. In the year 1588 he appointed to the office Uanitzin, who, however, was not proclaimed king (tlahtohuani), nor could he be quauhtlahtouani, "war chief", on account of his rank ; therefore he was installed in office under the Spanish title of " gobernador He died as early as 1541. One of his sons, Don Cristoval de Guzman Cecetzin, or Cecepaticatzin, was afterward, in 1559, the third gobernador of Mexico. Finally, regarding Oquiztli, the fourth person, set down in our manuscript underneath Quauhtemoc, we know from Tezozomoc's Cronica that he was installed as king at Azcapotzalco ' at the same time as Uanitzin at Ecatepec. Tezozomoc also designates him as a nephew of Motecuhzoma; but I have no positive information as to who his parents were. Azcapotzalco had become subject to the Mexicans since 1429, when the old rulers Avere driven out and the land Avas divided." Oquiztli also seems to have taken no conspicuous part in the fighting during the siege. He was forced, with the other noble Mexicans, to accompany Cortes on his expedition into the forest regions of Chiapas and Honduras, and died there soon after the execution of Quauhtemoc, in the year 1542.'^ So much concerning these four. Of the other persons set down in our manuscript from the ninth division upward, only the one entered in division 16 (counting from the lower path) is better knoAvn. This, as the explanatory note tells us, is Don Diego de San Francisco Teuetzquititzin, the son of Tezcatlpopocatzin, Avho again Avas a son of Tizocicatzin, seventh king of Mexico, and lived sub- ject to Spanish rule in Calpul Teopan, the barrio of San Pablo of Tenoclititlan. He Avas appointed gobernador of Mexico after Uani- tzin's death, in 1541, and died there in the year 1554.^^ The name Teuetzquiti means " the jester " he who makes others laugh ". The hieroglyph in our manuscript seems intended to represent a kind of comic mask. Elsewhere in the Sahagun manuscript of the Acade- mia de la Historia, he is represented by an open mouth, and a namesake of his, Tetlaueuetzquititzin, who belonged to the royal family of Tetzcoco, and Avas gobernador of Tetzcoco at about the same time, is represented by an open mouth Avith the little tongue {k, figure 37), indicative of speech, before it. The head, behind which the hieroglyph in our manuscript is placed, is drawn Avith the royal headband of turquoise mosiac, as in the cases of Motecuhzoma, Quauhtemoc, Uanitzin, and Oquiztzin. Like them, Teuetzquitizin belonged to the royal family of Mexico. « Chimalpahin, p. 99. 6 Chimalpahin, p. 207. <^ Chimalpahin, pp. 241, 250 ; Sahagun manuscript, Academia de la Historia. selerI MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT II 169 Of the other persons, I will first mention the one in division 7 (plate vii), counting from the lower path, besides Quauhtemoc, whom the explanatory note calls Don Martin Cortes Nezahual tecolotzin. The name is not known to me from other sources. The head is drawn with the hair hanging straight down, without the chieftain's hair dress and the royal headband; but above the head is the royal headband of turquoise mosiac. This is the well-known symbol used in the Mendoza codex for the office of tlacateccatl (see figure 38, page IT, of the ^lendoza codex). The hieroglyph behind the head con-esponds (\xactly to the name Nezahual tecolotl, which means a I) c d e f g J I i Fig. 38. Symbols of names. " fasting owl ", for the back part of the hieroglyph shows plainly the face of an owl, and the front part a ribbon, w^oven of man}^- colored strips, with ends standing out, which is a familiar and universally understood symbol for nezahualli " fasting " (see the hieroglyphs of Nezahualcoyotl, the fasting coyote h and f', same figure, and Nezahualpilli, "the fasting prince" or "the fasting child", d and e). Those marked h and d are taken from the Codex Telleri- ano-Remensis and e and e from the Sahagun manuscript of the Academia de la Historia. The symbol was derived from the custom 170 BUKEAU OF AMEKICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 of shutting oneself up for the purpose of fasting. When sechision was not actually accomplished, it seems to have been indicated by a ring plaited of the stalks of the aztapilin, or aztopillin, a variety of rush of a wliitish color below and green above (see /, taken from the Borgian codex, which represents the fasting person blowing the conch and carrying a water jug on his shoulder within an inclosure plaited of green and white strips). In ]:>arallel pas- sages of the Borgian codex and Codex Vaticanus B a man is drawn, inclosed in a chest, waving the thorn of castigation in one hand and the green acxoyatl bush in the other. In corresponding passages of the Codices Telleriano-Remensis and Vaticanus A Quetzalcoatl, the god who was considered the inventor of castigation, a2)pears armed in similar fashion in a boxlike inclosure, consisting of tAvo parts. A head follows in division 9 (plate vii), which, like that of Motel- chiuh in division 3, wears the chieftain's hair dress (temillotl). The explanatory note calls this Anaiiacatzin, that is/Vfrom the land by the water '\ " from the seacoast This name is hieroglyphically represented here by a circle (island?) surrounded by water. In the list of names of persons (Manuscrit Mexicain number Bil)li()theque Nationale), ah-eady frequently quoted, Anauacatl occurs as the name of a citizen of xVlmoyauacan and is expressed by r/, that is, by a stream of water Avhich is depicted before the mouth of a person, after the fashion of the little tongue which signifies speech. For atl is water and nahuatl clear, or intelligible, speech. I am unal)le to say where the Anauacatl of our manuscript belongs. In division 10 follows a head with hair hanging straight down, which is designated in the accompanying note as Xaxaqualtzin. Xaqualoua means " to rub and this action is represented in the hieroglyph by two hands using a sort of scouring brush. In the next division, 11, is another head Avith the chieftain's hair dress (temillotl). The explanatory note calls it Cuetlachi\dtzin, " wolf's feather '', and this is expressed in the hieroglyph by the head of a wolf Avith tufts of down. In Chimalpahin's annals a Cuetla- chiuitzin is mentioned Avho Avas installed as ruler of Tequanipan in 1561, and Avho died in 1572, but I am unable to say whether this is the one referred to in our manuscript. I do not think it at all prob- able, as there is nowhere in our manuscript an allusion to the region of the Chalcas. In division 12 we have another head Avith hair hanging straight down. The note calls it uitznauatl, A\hich is expressed in the hiero- glyph by the thorny point of an agave leaf (uitztli, "thorn") and the small tongue of speech in front of it (nauatl, " clear speech "). « I have shown in the comptes rendns of the eighth session of the Congres International des Aniericanistes. Paris, 1 800, pp. 586, 587, that the word Anauac means the seacoast, an(? that it is absurd to speak of the plateau of Anahuac. srlerI MEXICAN PICTUKE WRITINGS FKAGMENT II 171 The thorn, the sharp point of the agave leaf, is divided by an oblique line, and one half is painted red, to indicate that it is covered with blood. These thorny points of the agave leaf were used in religious self-castigations, and, as we frequently see on the last pages of the Mendoza codex, also largely for purjioses of punishment and edu- cational discipline. The Avord uitznauatl was a title, which in Mexico and elsewhere Avas coiniected Avith a certain niilitai-y or ])olit- ical office. We saAV aboA^e that Motelchiuh bore this title. Tlie ])lu- ral, uitznaua, denoted a class of evil spirits, Avhich Avere conc^uered and destroyed by Uitzilopochtli, and uitznauac, or uitznauatlanipa, is the region of the south. In diAdsion 13 we haA^e again a head Avitli hair hanging straight down. The note says uaxtepecatl petlacalcatl. The first name means "one from Uaxtepec " (from the place of the uaxin, Acacia esculenta). Uaxtepec Avas a place in the district of CuernaA^aca, therefore in a temperate region (" tierra templada "). Here Avas the Jardin d'Acclimation of the kings of Mexico; that is, they trans- planted hither such trees and plants from the tierra caliente as seemed to them interesting, and came themseh^es for rest and recreation. The place is hieroglyphically rej) resented by //, figure 38, that is, by a mountain and a tree from Avhose branches hang the long knobby acacia pods (usually painted red). Petlacalcatl means " the steAvard of the mat house This Avas a kind of public storehouse, Avhere Avere kept mats and other articles of furniture Avhich Avere used when foreign royal guests came. The petlacalcatl directed the public works, as shoAvn in / taken from the Mendoza codex, page 71. Here the ])etlacalatl is represented on the left, Avith many little tongues before his mouth, to express the admonitions Avhich he bestoAvs upon those commanded to do the Avork. In the middle are the basket and the tool (uictli, or coauacatl), with which we are already acquainted, and to the right crouches the Aveeping 3^outh commanded to do the Avork. The hieroglyph behind the man's head in division 13 of our manuscript (plate a^ii) refers to this function of the petla- calcatl, and represents the aboA^e-mentioned implement, Avhich Ave haA^e already met Avitli as the hieroglyphic expression of tlacohtli. The first Avord in the accompanying note, " uaxtepecatl is not ex- pressed in the hieroglyph. I knoAv of no person by this name. It is probable that uaxtepecatl " does not stand here for the name of a person, but denotes the district to Avhich the official belonged. AVe often find the governors of proAdnces mentioned by the adjectiA^e form of their district instead of by their proper name — Cuetlaxtecatl, " the governor of Cuetlaxtlan etc. So here, too, uaxtepecatl petla- calcatl may mean merely " the keeper of the stores, the steward of the district of Uaxtepec ". 172 BUREAU OF AMERICAH ETHHOLOGY [bull. 28 Between divisions 13 and 14 in our manuscript there is a lesser stream of \Yater, which, as I have said, leads straight across the page, from the path on the right to the water on the left. Then fol- lows above, in division 14, a head with hair hanging straight down, in the explanatory note of which some of the letters are destroyed and made unintelligible by a dark stain ; but the hieroglyph behind the head informs us that the note must be read Itzj^otoncatzin ; that is, He who is stuck over with obsidian knives instead of with feathers". The hieroglyph shows us a stone knife (iztli, kuife " obsidian with tufts of down sticking to it (potonqui, " stuck over with feath- ers"). Feathers fastened to the hair and naked skin were part of the holiday dress. Young girls adorned themselves for a festival by Fig. 39. Symbols from Mexican codices. sticking red feathers to their arms and legs, and because this stick- ing on of feathers Avas part of the holiday dress the victim of sacrifice was similarly adorned, except that white feathers were used, to show that he was doomed to death. Those intended for the sacrificio gla- diatorio, in particular, were smeared with white infusorial earth (tizatl) and stuck over with white down (iuitl) a, figure 39. To send tizatl and iuitl was therefore a declaration of war. The oppo- nent was thus sjanbolically doomed to a sacrificial death. Hence in Codex Telleriano-Remensis the conquest of a city is invariably rep- resented by the picture of a man painted white, Avith dots, and cov- ered with tufts of down (h, figure 39) , and in the Mendoza codex, page 47, we see the declaration of war against an insubordinate cacique SELEKJ MEXICAN PICTUKE WKITINOS FRAGMENT II l73 also represented in this way, c. The envoy of the kinfr wliile he deliv- ers his message is sticking feather tufts upon the head of the cacique, Avho sits in his chair clothed in a rich nuintle. Another brings him the sliield, \A'hich Avas also part of the equipment of those destined foi- the sacrificio gladiatorio. In the next division, 15 (plate vii), we have a head with hair hanging straight doAvn, which is called Ixeuatzin in the accom- panying note. Ix-tli means- ^' face " front ", " presence " eye euatl means " the skin and Avas also used especially to denote the gala doublets, made of feather w^ork Avhich Avere Avorn by Mexican warriors of rank OA^er the Avadded armor, ichca-uii^illi, Avhich served for the actual protection of their bodies. In figure 39, I have re- produced one of these military doublets of feather Avork Avhich is used in the Mendoza codex, pages 40 to 49, as a hieroglyph for the city of Cozouipilecan " Avhere the people wear military doublets of yellow feathers A true euatl, that is, the skin flayed from a man (tla- caeuatl), is Avorn by the god Xipe, " the flayed one the red god of the Yopi and Tlapaneca. The hieroglyph in diAdsion 15 of our manu- script (plate vii), corresponding to the meaning given here for the name, is an eye (ixtli) ; above and beloAv it is a shirt, as shoAvn in 6?, flgure 39, but haA-ing hands lianging from it and with a gash straight across the breast and a fcAv stains beloAv. It is evident that this draAving is not meant to represent a feather shirt, but a genuine human skin, such as Xipe Avore. The oj^ening straight across the breast indicates the incision Avliich Avas made to tear out the victim's heart, and the stains are for blood stains. This is still more clear in the kindred hieroglyph in division 24 (plate vii), where the red stains — blood stains on a yellow ground, Avhich indicates the death hue of a human skin — are plainly to be recognized. After division 15 comes division 16, with the head and hieroglyph of Don Diego de San Francisco Teuetzquititzin, of w^hich I have already spoken. In division IT is another head having the chieftain's hair dress, temillotl. The note says coua-yvitzin, " snake-feather ", and this is represented in the hieroglyph by a snake covered with tufts of doAvn. The name Coua-iuitl is mentioned in the annals of Chimalpahin. Chimalpahin tells us there that after the surrender of the city the above-mentioned Aat princes of Mexico Avere taken captiA^e to Coy- ouacan, and then adds: yhuan teohua Quauhcohuatl yhuan Cohu ayhuitl Tecohuatzin Tetlanmecatl quintemolli (" and they sought for the priest Quauhcoatl and for Couaiuitl Tecouatzin, Tetlanmecatl"). It is not impossible that the Couaiuitl mentioned , here, concerning whom I know no further particulars, is also the one referred to in our manuscript. 174 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 In division 18 is a head with hair hanging straight down, which, according to the marginal note, bears the name Imexayacatzin. The hieroglyph is a human leg, upon the thigh of which is painted a face. This exactly reproduces the meaning of the name. Xayacatl means " the face ", and imexayacatl is literally imex-xayacatl, which is derived, with syncopation of the final consonant of the first word, from imetzxayacatl, that is, " the face made of her thigh (metz-tli)". The name refers to a ceremony which was performed at the broom feast, Ochpaniztli, the feast of the goddess Teteo-innan, or Toci. A woman was sacrificed at this feast, who, as Avas customary at the feasts of the Mexicans, w^as considered an image of the divinity in whose honor the feast was held, and who represented this deity in dress and action. This woman was sacrificed by decapitation, a priest hold- ing her on his back, and was then immediately flayed. A priest dressed himself in the skin, and represented the goddess during the remainder of the feast. From the skin of the thigh a mask was made, which Avas called mexayacatl, or more correctly i-mex-xa3^acatl, " the face made of her thigh ". It Avas Avorn, together Avith a peculiar headdress, which Avas called itztlacoliuhqui, " the sharply curved particularl}^ described in the respectiA-e chai)ter of Sahagun (volume 2, chapter 30). It Avas considered the symbol of coldness and hard- ness, of infatuation, of evil, and of sin. I reproduce this mask and headdress, /, from the Sahagun manuscript of ,the Academia de la Historia, where the two combined are depicted as the insignia of a warrior, under the name mexayacatl. The mask (mexayacatl) and the headdress (itztlacoliuhqui) Avere put on by Cinteotl, the god of the maize plant, or more exactly of the ripe, hard, dry ear of corn, which was called cintli, Avho Avas the son of the old earth mother, Teteoinnan, and a battle then ensued betAveen him and his folloAvers on the one hand, and the priest clad in the human skin, representing the goddess, on the other, Avhich Avas undoubtedly meant to symbolize the driving aAvay of frost and other harmful things Avhich threaten the Indian corn. These harmful things Avere supposed to be conjured into the mexayacatl. Therefore at the close of the feast a chosen band of Avarriors carried it at a running pace somewhere across the borders into hostile country.'^ In the next division, 19, the note gives the name xipanoctzin. This should really read xip-panoc-tzin, derived by assimilation from xiuh- panoc-tzin, just as xip-palli, "color turquesado", is derived from xiuh- palli. Accordingly, the name contains the elements xiuh (or, with the article, xiuitl), "turquoise", and panoc, "he Avho crosses a river" (from pano, " to cross a river ") . Both elements are clearly expressed in the hieroglyph. Xiuh is expressed by the hieroglyph for tur- " Sahagun, v. 2, chap. 80. SELEIt] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT II 175 quoise (see figure 34) and "crossing the river" by the boat which is drawn below it. In division 20 (plate vii) the note is again rendered quite illegible by the crease m the page, but I think that I can distinctly make out Tepotzitotzin. The name contains the elements tepotz-tli, " hump- back and itoa, " to speak Hence the hieroglyph shows a human body with a curved back and beside it the little tongue, the symbol of speech. In the next division, 21, the note is somewhat illegible, owing to an attempted correction. I think I can make out yaotequacuiltzin, which might be translated " the old priest of Yaotl, i. e., Tezcatli- poca There is no hieroglyph. In division 22 the explanatory note reads aca-zayol-tzin, that is, reed gnat '\ The hieroglyph is the picture of the reed (acatl) and, above it, of a gnat (zayolin), painted brown. In division 23 we read Amaquemetzin, " he who wears a garment of bark paper '\ By quemitl, garment ", the Mexicans meant a kind of covering usually made of more or less costly feathers, which Avas tied around the neck of idols and hung down in front, and was therefore commonly called by the Spaniards delantal Amatl is the inner bark of a variety of fig, which Avas much used in ancient Mexico, especially as a cheap adornment for idols. Amaqueme, " dressed in a garment of bark paper w as the name of the idol on the mountain near Amaquemecan, in the territory of the Chalca, Avhich, Christianized and called Monte Sacro, is still held in great veneration by the inhabitants of all the neighboring valleys, pil- grimages being made to it from great distances. The hieroglyph in division 23 shows the form of the quemitl usual in the manuscripts (see figure 39, the hieroglyph of Tequemecan, and also r, figure 35, the hieroglyph of Aztaquemecan) , but it is blank and nnpainted save for a few black designs, which were j^robably made with drops of hot liquid caoutchouc. Similar paper quemitl with caoutchouc-drop markings played an important part in the worship of the mountain gods at least. With them Avere decked the little idols of the moun- tain gods, the Eecatotontin, Avhich were made during the Tepeilhuitl, the feast of the mountain gods (see g and A, figure 39, the figures of the mountains Popocatepetl and Matlalcueye, from the Sahagun manuscript of the Biblioteca del Palacio). I Avill mention, by the Avay, that Kingsborough's artist has erroneously colored this hiero- glyph red and yelloAv, though it must be and is colorless. In division 24 (plate vii) the explanatory note gives the name eua- tlatitzin, that is, " he Avho hides the sl^in ■'. An euatl, a doublet made of a human skin, forms the hieroglyph, like the one in division 15. The name eua-tlati-tzin probably refers to the ceremony Avhich was performed at the close of Tlacaxipeualiztli, the feast of the god Xipe, 176 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 when those who for 20 days had worn the skins of the sacrificed vic- tims, out of special devotion to Xipe, carried them in solemn proces- sion to a certain j^lace in Xipe's temple. This was called eua-tlati-lo, the hiding or putting away of the skins The twenty-fifth square is blank. In the twenty-sixth square^ a head is drawn which the writing above it calls Teilpitzin, that is. " he who binds people '\ The hieroglyph shows a rope tied in a knot, a sufficiently intelligible symbol. This ends the list. Few familiar names are mentioned, as we see, and these belong to about the same period. They are all the direct successors of Moteculizoma, excepting the first one, Cuitlauatzin (c, figure 37), who, it is well known, died of smallpox after reigning a few weeks, and who, excepting the last two gobernadores, Cece- patitzin, who succeeded Teuetzquititzin, and his successor, Nanacaci- pactzin, were the last of the ancient royal family to exercise any kind of royal authority. It therefore seems as though our fragment treated of territory which was a royal demesne, but which after Mote- cuhzoma's death probably did not pass as a Avhole to hi^ successors, but was in part divided with others. It is my opinion that this manuscript formed a part of the col- lection brought together by Boturini, and that it is described as num- ber 8, se(.*tion 8, in his Museo Indiano. Boturini there gives the following description: Otro mapa en papel indiano, donde se pin- tan, al parecer y por lo que se puede decir ahora, unas tierras sola- riegas de senores, empezando de dicho Emperador Moteuchzuma, y siguiendo a otros hasta los tiempos de la cristiandacl ("Another map on Indian paper, where are painted, apparently and so far as can be said now, lands belonging to different lords, beginning with the said Emperor Moteuchzuma, and afterward to others down to the times of Christianity "). FRAGMENTS III AND IV These (plates viii and ix) are two fragments of a larger manu- script, which belonged to the collection of the Cavaliere Boturini. In the inventory of the collection made after Boturini's imprisonment it is described in the fourth list, under number 26, in the following words : Un mapa grande, papel de maguey gordo con pinturas toscas, muy maltratado; trata de las cosas de la conquista de Cuanmana y otros lugares, de los Espanoles, con unos rios de sangre, que indican las batallas crueles que hubo de los Indios ("A large map on coarse aloe paper, with rude paintings, in very bad condition, treats of events during the conquest of Cuanmana and other places by the Spanish, with rivers of blood, which indicates the cruel battles which they waged with the Indians")." Boturini himself describes it as « Penafiel, Monumentos del arte mexicano. Text, p. 61. I BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY MEXICAN PAINTING-HU: C )LDT FRAGMENT III SELERl MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENTS HI, IV 177 number 2, section 20, in the Catalogo del Museo Indiano del Cavallero Boturini, somewhat more in detail. lie says there: Otro mapa nuiy grande de una pieza, y maltratado a los dos lados, de papel grucso indiano. Tiene de largo algo mas de ocho varas, y de ancho dos varas y quarta, y trata con toscas pinturas de las crueles guerras de hi gentilidad entre diferentes pueblos, cuyos nombres son Hecatepec, Iluyatepec, Amoltepec, Nientlah, Tzatzaqualan, Hueymetlan, Colte- pec, Antlacaltepec, Tepechalla, Xiquipilco, Achalalan, Zayutepec, Teconhiiac, Totolhuitzecan, Yahueyocan, Zacatzolah, Mazapila, y despues de haver demonstrado con unos rios de sangre, assi lo cruento de la guerra, como de los prisioneros sacrificados, apunta la Hegada del gran Cortes, y de los Padres de San Francisco en Quauhmanco, etc. ("Another map, very large, in one piece, in bad condition at both sides, on thick Indian paper. It is some 8 ells long and 2-j ells wide, and treats in rude paintings of the cruel wars of the gentry with various tribes, whose names are Hecatepec, Huyatepec, Amol- tepec, Nientlah, Tzatzaqualan, Hueymetlan, Coltepec, Antlacaltepec, Tepechalla, Xiquipilco, Achalalan, Zayutepec, Teconhuac, Totol- huitzecan, Yahueyocan, Zacatzotlah, Mazapila, and after having shown by rivers of blood both the cruel nature of the war and the prisoners who were sacrificed, it relates to the coming of the great Cortes and of the Franciscan fathers to Quauhmanco, etc.")® That these descriptions refer to the manuscript of which fragments III (plate viii) and IV (plate ix) of the present collection are parts follows from the general characterization of the manuscript and from the reference to the rivers of blood (rios de sangre) , which are indeed very conspicuous on our page ; unfortunately, they are not as obvious in the uncolored photographic reproduction. This is clearly proved by the fact that three of the names of ^^laces mentioned by Bcturini are actually mentioned in the explanatory notes of our fragment III. The last three places mentioned by Boturini, Yahuayohca, Zacateotlah, and Mazapillah (I read the names thus), are the ones that occur on the fragment. Our fragment must belong to one of the original lateral margins of the manuscript. The missing pieces, which must be very considerable, since in Boturini's time the Avhole measured 8 ells in length and 2J ells in width, are extant elsewhere, whether intact or not I can not say. The Museo Xacional de Mexico possesses large portions of them. I saw copies of them last year in the Mexican de- partment of the American historical exhibition at Madrid, and other parts — as it seems, very important ones, taken from what was origi- nally the middle — I saw years ago in the Biblioteca Xacional in Mexico. Boturini states that there had been in his possession a second, similar « Idea de una nueva historia general de la America septentrional. App., pp. 38, 39. 7238— No. 28—05 12 178 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 manuscript, on which, among others, were the place names Tonal xo- chitlan, Quauhtepan, Ynenechcoyan, Tepeyahualco, Ohocotlan, Tlilal- pan, and Ameyalato on the one side; and on the other, Huixocotepec, Huecoyotzi, Coyocan, Quetzalcohuapan, Tlacotlan, Atlan, Quimichocan, Chipetzinco, Qnanapa, Tepeyahualco, Yxtlahuaca, Ocotzoquauhtla. This and the first manuscript were found together — enterrados en una caxa baxo las ruinas de la antigua ermita de la jurisdiccion de Huamantla, Provincia de Tlaxcallan, y de alii los hice sacar buried in a box beneath the ruins of the ancient monastery in the district of Huamantla, province of Tlaxcallan, and from there I had them taken'') — and he adds: "Y solo se p'leden interpretar en un todo, en occasion que se consulten los manuscritos de la Historia general (" and they can only be interpreted as a Avhole, whenever the manuscripts of the general history are con- sulted"). This information is very important, because the region from Avhich fragments III and IV of our collection came is thus definitely fixed. The place called " QuauhnuuK^o in Boturini's description of the leaf and " Cuanmana " in the inventory is undoubtedly Huamantla, situ- ated in the ])rovince of Tlaxcallan, at the northeast base of the Cerro de la Malinche (the mountain called in ancient times after the goddess Matlalcueye), in the neighborhood of which Boturini found the two remarkable manuscripts. Huamantla doubtless stands for Qua- mantla, which, in turn, is derived by contraction from Quauh-man- tlan. In fact, there are still extant in that region many of the names which Boturini mentions as occurring on these two charts. I can not, it is true, accurately define the position of the three several i)laces whose names occur on fragment III (plate viii), but it is beyond a doubt that they were in the same region. As for the representations on these pages, the j^ortions belonging originall}^ to the middle nuist be distinguished from those belonging to the borders. The principal part of the left side of fragment III (plate A' III) belongs to the part which was originall}^ the middle. Here we see, first, surrounded by flying spears and fighting warriors, a curious design in which a stream of water, painted blue, Avith draAv- ings of currents and Avhirlpools and with the usual snail shells on the branches, is intertwined Avith a band Avinding in a similar manner and fra^^ed at the ends, composed of alternate sections of gray Avith dark figures and yelloAv with red figures. The alternate dark sections and light yelloAv sections Avith red figures denote fire, and the entire symbol is nothing more than the pictorial hieroglyphic expression for the Avell-knoAvn phrase atl tlachinolli, or teoatl tlachinolli, which may be understood as meaning literally " Avater and fire although its original meaning Avas probably something else, and Avhich is generally used in the sense of " Avar The same symbol, somewhat differently SKLEK] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENTS III, IV 179 drawn (see a, figure 40), may be seen in the headdress of the god Camaxtli, the war god of the Tlaxcaltecs, who is oj^posite the fire god, the ruler of the ninth week, which begins with ce Coatl, on page 9 of the Tonahmiatl in the Aubin-Goupil collection. I have shown that the tonalaniatl occurs in the most diverse Mexican pic^ture w^ri tings with the same regents and essentially the same symbols or symbols derived from the same idea." If we take the Borgian codex, for instance, we find here, too, the fire god depicted as the ruler of the ninth week, ce Coatl. But opposite him we have not the effigy of Camaxtli, the war god of Tlaxcala, but a design figure 40) in which w-e clearly recognize, besides a scorpion and flying arrows, the Fig. 40. Symbols and iisiu-es fmui the Mexican codic^. stream of water and. the ascending smoke of fire. In another parallel passage in the same manuscript there is again drawn opposite the fire god, instead of the war god, merely a scorpion, a stream of water, and a burning house, r-, teoatl tlachinolli, the symbol of w-ar. The bodies of the warriors on our fragment (plate viii) , to the right of the teoatl tlachinolli, the symbol of war, are painted broAvn and the faces yellow, like the other figures on this fragment. Moreover, all the warriors have a characteristic red face j^ainting, which con- sists of one vertical stripe and two horizontal stripes. This painting undoubtedly has some special ethnic significance. At least it differs « Ober den Codex Borgia und die verwandten aztelsischen Bilderschriften. 180 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 from the painting customary among the Mexican warriors, who, as we learn from Sahagun, app. 3, chapter 5, and as we see represented throughout the Mendoza codex, colored the whole body black except the face, and this they painted with a few black stripes, on which they sprinkled powdered iron pyrites — niman michio, mitoaya motliltzo- tia, hapetztli ic conpotonia ininechival, " Y en la cara se ponian cier- tas rayas con tinta y margagita ''.'^ On the other hand, I find face painting like that of the warriors of our fragment III (plate viii) on the head set upon a mountain, which is given in the Mendoza codex as the hieroglyph of the city of Otompan, " in the district of the Oto- mis d (figure 40). as well as in a drawing, which, in the list of names of persons of Uexotzinco (Manuscrit Mexicain number 3, Bib- liotheque Nationale), denotes a man named Chi'chimeca. We know that the name Chicliimeca was borne as an honorary title by the rulers of Tetzcoco and, especially, by the Tlaxcaltecs. Red and yellow painting is mentioned as occurring among the Mexicans, but it was not a mark of distinction regularly conferred by official consent, as I would emphasize in controversion of some recent statements, but a symbolic ceremony, performed but once, by which it was publicly made known that a warrior had taken a prisoner alone, without help from others. This painting, which consisted in coloring the body, and temples yellow and the face red, was applied to the fortunate warrior in the presence of the king by the calpixcjue, the governors of the provinces, and the commanders of divisions of troops stationed at a distance, the recipient being afterw^ard rewarded by the king. It is exactly the same decoration as the one worn by those who sacri- ficed a prisoner by fire at the feast Xocotl-uetzi in honor of the fire god. I have spoken elsewhere of the meaning of this manner of painting the face, which is really that of the goddess Ciuacouatl, or Quilaztli (see Ausland, 1891, page 865). Beside atl tlachinolli, the symbol of war, we have six Avarrior fig- ures and the lower half of a seventh in our fragment III (plate viii). Five of them wear the warrior's hair dress (temillotl) (see I and m, figure 37, and the heads in divisions 3, 9, 11, and IT, counting from the lower path, on fragment II (plate vii) of this collection). All these are armed wdth the shield (chimalli) and the club (maquauitl), which has an edge of obsidian splinters on both sides.'' So, too, the three warriors drawn on the' right side of the fragment have the temillotl and are armed with shield and maquauitl. Only one warrior in the left-hand row, the fifth from below, has the other style of hair dress, which I described above as tzotzocolli, and which is illustrated by <9, " Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologic, 1887, v. 21, p. 175 and following,, "das Tonalamatl der Aubinschen Sammlung ". Compte rendu, seventh session, Congres International des Americanistes, Berlin. 1888. pp. 521-523. ^ See also the pictures of Mexican warriors' ornaments, m, p, and q, fig. 37. SELER] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS — FRAGMENTS III, IV 181 />, figure 37. This wiirrior is not armed with shield and chib, bnt with arrow (mitl), bow (thuiitolli ) , and quiver (mi-coniitl) . The different mode of wearing tlie hair may be due merely to difference of rank, for the hair dress (temillotl), was the distinguishing niar-k' of the tequiua, the great war chieftains. Still I think that there is also an ethnic difference apparent here. The maquauitl was the national weapon of the Mexican tribes, that is, of the inhabitants of the valley of Mexico and those who spoke their language. . Besides this the spear (tlacochtli, tlatzontectli) , thrown with the spear thrower (atlatl),was also used as an effective weapon. On the other hand, bow, arrow, and quiver Avere the Aveapons of the mountain tribes, the Chichimecs. The name Chichimecatl is reproduced in the Boturini codex and elsewhere simply by the picture of a bow and arrow (/ and r/, figure 40). The word Chichimecatl includes a multitude of very different tribes, speaking different languages. In the vicinity of the highlands of Mexico, and also in the district referred to on our fragment, that is, the region lying east and north of Tlaxcala, the only mountain tribe of importance is the Otomi. It is a remarkable fact that this very tribe wore the hair in a mode most closely resembling that which I have described above as tzotzocolli, which may be seen worn by the fifth figure from below in the left-hand row on our fragment. The Otomi, says Sahagun (volume 10, chapter 29), shaved the hair on the forehead and let it grow very long at the back of the head. This hair hanging down long behind was called piochtli. At the gates of Tlaxcallan, as we know from Gomara, Otomi was actually spoken. The god of the Tlaxcaltecs was not Tezcatlipoca bearing the spear thrower, but the arrow-shooting Camaxtli, who is never seen without the pouch in wdiich he carries his arrowheads of flint. And the ruder, more rustic, but also warlike, nature wdiich was attributed to the Tlaxcaltecs Avas undoubtedly due to the stronger admixture of the indigenous Chichimec, that is, Otomi, element. The shields Avhich the chieftains hold in their hands are of three sorts. The fourth figure from below in the left roAV holds a shield whose surface is decorated Avith five tufts of doAvn arranged in a quin- cunx. Such shields are mentioned in the Sahagun manuscript under the name of iui-teteyo, " decorated Avith single balls of feathers ". Another shield, on Avhose surface are five small gold plates arranged in a quincunx, is called, correspondingly, teocuitla-teteyo. The shield Avith the tufts of doAvn arranged in a (luincunx is carried by the idol of Uitzilopochtli (see the picture of it in Codices Telleriano-Remen- sis I, page 9, and Vaticanus A, page 71, which rei)resents the fifteenth annual festival, Panquetzaliztli, the feast of Uitzilopochtli) . Uitzilo- pochtli's shield is called teueuelli. It is described as folloAvs in the Sahagun manuscript of the Biblioteca Lprenziana : Otlatl in tlachi- 182 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 valli, otlachimalli, nauhcan tlapotonilli quauhtlachcayotica, iiiicha- chapanqui, moteneua teueuelli ; that is, " made of reeds, with eagle's down stuck on it in four places in conglomerate masses; it is called teueuelli Together Avith the shield, Uitzilopochtli bears four spears that are tipped with tufts of down instead of stone points, which were called tlauacomalli." The shield with the tufts of down also appears constantly in the Mendoza codex, where the symbol of war — shield, spear thrower, and bijndle of spears — is represented before the pic- ture of the king. From this latter fact it has been concluded that this shield was used by the Mexican kings; but I doubt whether this was the case. Uitzilopochtli bears this shield, as he bears the tlauagomalli (the four spears tipped with tufts of doAvn instead of stone) ; that is, he has the Aveapons which Avere placed in the liand of those destined to a sacrificial death — to the sacrificio gladiatorio (see a and 6, figure 39), because to a certain extent he represents the conception of a AA^arrior's death — a death b}^ sacrifice on the round stone (temalacatl) . There is an interesting statement in regard to these AA^eapons of Uitzilopochtli in the annals of Chimalpahin. We read there that the elder Motecuhzoma in the year 1440, before he was installed as a ruler, Avent to the Chalca to beg the princes of Amaquemecan to set in motion the otlanamitl and the teueuelli (ynic conolinique in otlanamitl in teueuelli), in order that the Tepanecs might be subdued (inic opopoliuh in Tepanecatl).'' Here teueuelli is the name of Uitzilopochtli's shield and otlanamitl should read otlanammitl. The latter word is derived by contraction from otla- nauh-mitl and means " the four bamboo arroAA^s ". The whole is undoubtedly only a figure of speech.^" Motecuhzoma simply asks the Chalca to support him in Avar against the Tepanecs. But that a figurative expression of this kind could be used proves that teueuelli universally denoted the shield of the Avar god, for the god of the Chalca Avas not Uitzilopochtli, but Tezcatlipoca. The shields of the other warriors on our fragment III (plate a^iii) are of two types, the two Avhich occur most frequently among the armor depicted in the tribute list and in the Mendoza codex. The first, third, and sixth Avarriors, from beloAv, in the left row and the lower of the tAvo on the right side, have shields Avhose surface exhibits a stepped meander pattern, undoubtedly executed in feather Avork, as on the ancient Mexican shields in the Museum of National Antiqui- ties at Stuttgart. A shield of this kind was called xicalcoliuhqui « Ver()£Eentlichungen aus dem Koniglichen Museum fiir Volkerkunde, v. 1, p. 122. 6 Chimalpahin, Seventh Relation, pp. 105, lOG. " Remi Simeon translates the passage : qu'ils transportassent ies engins de gaerre pour renverser les Tepaneques ("that they would transport the engines of war to overthrow the Tepanecs"). It does not refer to engines of war, nor would the Chalcas, if they had owned such a fetish, have actually given it out of their keeping, nor, finally, does ou-oli-ni mean to transport to any other place. sioLEKl MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENTS III, IV 188 chimalli." The pattern on the Stuttgart shield is executed in green and yellow, and the shields of this kind on the tribute list have the same colors, without a single excej)t ion. On our fragment the colors chosen are blue and red. The second warrior, from below, in the left row and the adjacent uj^per I'ight-hand warrior have a shield with concave cross bands curving upward, with one golden crescent above and three below. Such shields were called cuexyo chimalli.'' The background of these shields is usually red, and so it is on our frag- ment. The warrior who folloAvs in the upper row on the left, of whom only the lower half is visible, has a shield wdth a plain red surface. Concerning the other w-eapons and articles of dress there is not nnich to be said. The maquauitl, strangely enough, is painted blue in every instance. The Mexicans frequently denoted metal (silver), and usually tur- quoise mosaic, by blue in their paintings. But there can be no ques- tion of metal here, for a metal club w^ould not be armed wdth splin- ters of obsidian, and turquoise mosaic w^as employed only in the ornamentation of costly gala weapons, if at all. The clubs might have been painted blue in imitation of tunpioise mosaic, just as w^ar- riors \vore w^ooden ear pegs painted blue instead of those incrusted w^ith turquoise, as worn by the king.' Arrows and spears are rej^resented, as in all Mexican paintings, tipped with stone. The feathers at the nock end are applied some- what beloAv the end of the shaft, so that the end of the arrow can be placed on either the bow string or the peg of the spear throw^er. The feathers are drawn en face, that is, with the broad side next the shaft. This, how^ever, is probably due to defective draAving. In reality they must have lain perpendicular to the shaft. Thus, eyes are never drawn in profile, as they actually are in a face drawn in profile, but are always drawn en face. A ball of dow-n is invariably attached to the base of the feather. The quiver worn by one warrior on our frag- ment is painted yellow, wdth black spots, and is therefore supposed to be made of jaguar skin. All the figures are naked, save for the maxtlatl, " breechcloth," which is here painted red in all cases. The w arriors in the row^ on the left are represented as engaged in combat. Each of the three on the right side is dragging a prisoner, and broad streams of blood mark the paths they have traversed with their captives. Opposite the middle one of the three w^arriors is a man who seems to be in the act of receiving the victim wdth animated gestures. He wears only a red cap on his head, and is perhaps meant for a priest. « Veroffentliclinngen aus dem Koniglichen Museum fiir Volkei-kunde, v. 1, pi). 140, 141. 6 Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, 1S91, v. 23, p. 137. Yuan conaquia xiuhnacochtli, uel xiuitl, auh yu cequintin gan quauitl yn tiacbiualli tlaxiuhycuilolli (" and they wear turquoise ear pegs, which are made of turquoise, and others wear them of wood only, which are painted after the manner of turquoise"). Sahagun, v. 2, chap. 37. Manuscript Riblioteca del Palacio. 184 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 These representations of war and capture are bordered on the right side of the fragment by another series of pictures at right angles to the former. Here, somewhat crudely and awkwardly executed, is a , series of place hieroglyphs, before each of which is drawn a person- age seated on a chair, w^ho must be meant for the ancestor of the tribe settled in that place. Most of these personages seem to hold flowers in their hands, probably to express peaceful enjoyment, therefore secure dominion. The king in Codex Vaticanus A, page 86, is sim- ilarly depicted, richly dressed, with a tobacco pipe in one hand and a bunch of flowers in the other. At the beginning of the series below, on the left, there is still to be seen the head of one of these figures and the bunch of flowers which he holds in his hand. All the rest is missing. Then follows a mountain with a thatched house on its top, and in front of it sits a man whose name is represented by the eagle's head above. The explanatory note reads: nica yahuayohca yn toca cuitli 3^1 toconcol, that is, " here is the place ^ called 3^aua3^ohcan. Cuitli, ' hawk ', is ^y'^j, fj the ancestor ". Yauayocan might mean ^ /r-^ ^-^^^ where they walk in a circle Cuitli /^^^^^ /Jff¥\ undoubtedly a dialect expression for b\^lT^ cuixtli (cuixin, cuiztli), the name of ^ a smaller bird of prey (cuixin, " mi- FiG. 41. Mexican glyphs from list of ^ ,,x t i • l^' names lauo ) . I find cuixtli as a proper name, for instance, in the list of names of Almoyauacan in the Manuscrit Mexicain number 3, Bibliotheque Nationale (see <7, figure 41). Then follows a house with a stone roof and a person in front of it, above whom we see the head of the wind god by way of name hieroglyph. The place hieroglyph which doubtless was originally over the house is missing, and as there is no explanatory note there is naturally nothing to be said regarding the place. According to the hieroglyph, the person must have been named Ehecatl, a word which often occurs as the name of a person. On account of their unusual form, I give three designs, which in the list of names of Almoyauacan (Manuscrit Mexicain number 3) designate persons by the name of Ehecatl. Next follows a mountain with a bush on the top, painted rose- color; in front of it, a house with a stone roof; and before this, sitting on the tepotzo-icpalli, the woven-straw seat with a back, a personage whose name is indicated by a jaguar's head above. The note says: Auh nicah zacateotlah yn toconcol yn tocah ocenllotli (" and here follows Zacateotlan. His ancestor's name was Ocelotl"). Boturini read this Zacatzotlah. As I read the name, it contains the words SELER] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENTS III, IV 185 zaca-tl, " grass teo-tl, " god and the final syllable tla or tlan, which has the significance of a locative. Oceotl, " jaguar is a very common proper name. The last picture in the series is again a house with a stone roof; but the place hierogly])h, which nuist have been there originally, is missing. A personage is drawn in front of the house, whose name is given above by the representation of a stone knife (tecpatl). Here, too, there is a note, but it is almost illegible. The place name, in particular, can not be deciphered. I read : Nica mazap Ic yn toca . The notes, few words as they contain, are remarkable on account of their dialect form. In classic Aztec, nican means " here " ; tococol, "our ancestor"; ocelotl, "the jaguar". The writer who added the notes on our fragment III (plate viii) drops the final nasal after the short a in nican, and writes nica and nicah. And thus yahuayohca and zacateotlah probabh^ stand for yauayocan and zacateotlan. After the long vowels o and e, on the other hand, he inserts a nasal. He distinctly writes, both times, toconcol, " our ancestor ", and ocenllotl, " the jaguar ". I will mention here that, also in Tezozomoc's Cronica Mexicana, compilli is Avritten for cdpilli, and occasionally also ocen- lotL So, too, Ave occasionally find in Sahagun Tontec for Totec (one of Xipe's names). Fragment IV is, as I have said, and as inspection shows, a piece of the same manuscript to Avhich fragment III (plate viii) belonged; but it is difficult to determine Avhether it should be added to any part of it. On fragment IV (plate ix) we have, to the right, the figure of a warrior and the shield and maquauitl of another. The face painting and ornaments are the same as those of the Avarrior figures on the previous fragment, but the shield has a plain red -surface. Beside the foremost Avarrior is a Avord Avhich I read Ehcaquiyauh. The quiyauh seems quite plain, but the other part is perhaps doubtful. Ehcaqui- yauh Avould mean " Avind and rain ". Below the figures of Avarriors there is executed on a large scale a stream of Avater, Avith draAvings of Avhirlpools on its surface and snail shells on its branches. On the upper edge there is a series of representations, proceeding from the left, Avhich correspond to those on the right side of fragment III (plate viii). But there are no explanatory notes. The houses are thatched Avith straAv. The small benches on which the personages sit are all painted blue, like the Avood of the maquauitl. The first person from the left seems to carry the picture of a six-rayed or scA^en-rayed star, painted yelloAv, above his head, by Avay of a name hieroglyph. Hence the man's name Avas probably Citlal. OA^er the head of the sec- ond I think I see the draAving of a bone, and over the third that of a 186 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 2S thorn. These people were therefore probabh^ called Omitl and Uitz. The angular figure over the head of the fourth person, which seems likewise to be a name hieroglyph, I can not explain. Footprints are draAvn on both fragments, running between the various representations, denoting a road or a journey in each respec- tive direction. On fragment III (plate viii) the lower row of foot- prints leads from above on the left to below on the right; the upper row from below on the right to above on the left. On fragment IV (plate ix) there is a similar indication of paths leading in two direc- tions. If we hold the fragment as the figures stand, the footprints on the left lead downward from above — in this row there is but one Fig. 42. Figures from Mexican manuscript, fragment IV. footprint — but on the right they lead upward from below. The tracks themselves, rudely sketched, are very ditferent from the usual delicate drawing which Ave saw, for instance, in the paths on frag- ment II (plate vii). But this very fact showed me at a glance that a fragment preserved years ago in the Biblioteca Nacional at Mexico, from which I made a little drawing at the time, must have belonged to the same large manuscript. Here, in a bow-shaped green inclosure, are to be seen the four persons whom I reproduce in figure 42 from the drawing just mentioned. Above, on the right, is a man invested in the insignia of a priest, meca-cozcatl and ie-tecomatl (see pages 146 to 148), wearing the face painting of the fire god, the god who srler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT V 187 was considered the old and original god, and holding in his hand a nosegay and a spear. Oj^posite liim is a goddess with an erect, horn- like tuft of feathers on her head, therefore probably Xochiquetzal. Below, on the right, is an attendant god or priest with a banner in his hand. Below, on the left, is another, who is procuring fire by friction. Beside the latter the date chicney ytzcuintli is written, which must be meant to represent the name of this person. Beside the banner-bearer is the word Xochitonal (?). Beside the chief figure above, on the right, is another explanatory note, which I prob- ably copied incorrectly, for I can not interpret it; 'out it begins with d / 4 / p Fig. 43. Mexican name glyphs. the word nicah, the same word in the same dialect form with which the notes begin on fragment III (plate viii) of our collection. It is greatly to be desired that the present very able and energetic director of the Museo Nacional of Mexico may speedily publish also the fragments of this great manuscript, now in the possession of the museum, for in spite of its coarse and clumsy drawings the manuscript is very interesting. FRAGMENT V Next we have a piece of agave paper 42 cm. long and 15J cm. wide, divided into ten divisions by cross lines (plate x). The writer seems to have begun in the old way (see fragment I, plates ii to vi of this 188 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY Fbull. 28 collection), at the bottoR;i, and to have proceeded upward, for there appears to have been nothing above the topmost line. It is to be noted that the drawings are made in a different ink, blacker and more permanent, than that in Avhicli the names were entered. About the middle of the fraginent, in the sixth division from below, we have the hieroglyph of a place. I think the explanatory note should be read tezontepec. The hieroglyph is in the familiar form of a mountain (tepe-tl) bearing a tree. But the mountain is here divided, as it were, into a series of cliffs and prominences, which are painted a light bluish green in the middle and reddish at the edges, and its surface is diagonally crossed by a band contrasting sharply witli the rest of the coloring. The light diagonal band is prol)- ably intended to recall the familiar hieroglyph of the stone (tetl) (see 71, figure 37, and a. figure 43, the hieroglyph of Tepoxnuac, "where the stones are loose"). The alternately lighter and darker portions in this hieroglyph reproduce the various veinings of stone. In our hieroglyph irregular black stripes occur, both on the diagonal band and on the various cliffs and prominences of the mountain. This, I believe, is meant to indicate the porous quality of the stone, for tezontli means " stone froth ". This was the Mexican name for a porous stone which occurs in the valley of Mexico, and which, like the Roman travertine, has been much used for building purposes from the earliest times. In the Pintura del (Tobernador, Alcaldes y Regi- dores de Mexico, which is preserved in the archives of the Duke of Osuna, a village called Tezontepec same figure) is mentioned in a list with Hueypochtlan, Tequisquiac, Nestlalapan, Tlemaco, etc., as subject to a *' comandero ". It is very likely the place in the dis- trict of Tula, state of Hidalgo, which is still known by that name. The report published b}^ Doctor Penafiel, concerning the municipal divisions of the Republic of Mexico in 1884, mentions still another Tezontepec in the district of Pachuca. Of course it is impossible to state w4th certainty which Tezontepec may be meant here. In the other divisions (plate x) there is a man on the left and a woman on the right, except the two uppermost divisions, in which there is only a woman. The woman is always recognized by the manner of wearing the hair, which is marked by a bunch on the neck and two braids standing erect above the forehead, like horns. The names of the persons are written over them, and behind some of the heads a name hieroglyph is given. Several red dots are painted between the man and the Avoman in each division, varying from 4 to 8 in number. They are usually arranged in two rows, and where the number is uneven the row containing the smaller number of dots is placed uppermost. Here again the writer seems to have proceeded from beloAV upward. The whole was probably a sort of parish register of the village of Tezontepec, in which the BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 28 PLATE X MEXICAN PAINTING-HUMBOLDT FRAGMENT V SELEU] MEXICAN PICTUKE WRITINGS FRAGMENT V 189 man and wife in every household were given, with their names and the number of their children. This is confirmed by the fact that in the two topmost divisions, where only a w^oman and a number of red dots are entered, after the woman's name is the remark " yc ", which is the abbreviation for ycnociuatl, widow In the lowest division, over the man's head is written the name lolenzo te s. fo, that is, Lorenzo de San Francisco — for in the Mexican language there is no r nor d — and behind it is a hieroglyph which is partially destro3^ed and somcAvhat hidden by a fold in the paper, but is still clearly to be recognized as the drawing of a gridiron (see f, figure 43), the hieroglyph for the name Laurentius. The woman opposite him is named Ana, and the number of red dots is eight. In the second division (plate x) from below the name Antonio is written above the man's head. Behind it was a hieroglyph, but unfortunately it is now wholly obliterated. The woman opposite him is called Catharina, and the number of red dots is eight. In the third division from below the head, the name, and the hieroglyph of the man have been entirely destroyed by the fraying and tearing of the paper. The woman's name is Ana, and the num- ber of red dots is eight. In the fourth division the name over the man's head has also been destroyed, and the hieroglyph was hidden by a fold in the paper. T reproduce in figure 43, as much of it as I could see. The number of red dots is eight. In the fifth division (plate x) from below I think I can read, above the man's head, matheo te s. sepastian. The hieroglyph Is an arm painted yellowish brown, and in the hand is a round object painted light blueish green. I thinlv that this is meant for the liieroglyph designating matheo, for ma-itl is the Mexican for " the arm " the hand ". The name of the woman opposite is not clear to me. The number of reddish dots is six. In the sixth division, as I have already stated, are the name and hieroglj^ph of the village Tezontepec. In the seventh division, above the man's head, only clemente can still be read. I can not interpret the hieroglyph. The Avoman's name is missing. Six (or eight) red dots are given. In the eighth division, from below, in the note over the man's head, I can recognize distinctly only the second word. It is osola. The hieroglyph behind it seems to be intended for a bird's head with a tall crest of feathers. This may refer to the name; for col-in means the quail. Over the woman's head is a very much faded explanatory note, of which I can make out nothing but ana d Eey tz. The number of red dots is four. Before each of the windoAvs in the two uppermost divisions there 190 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull, us are five red dots. The lower one is named Juana, the upper one Maria. Behind tlie upper one is a design which looks like the mono- gram M A when cut in w^ood, and probably stands for the name Maria. Elsewhere — for instance, in the Duke of Osuna's Pintura — the name Maria is represented by a crown; for Maria is the queen of heaven. Behind Juana's head is a hieroglyph which represents an eye in an angle pointing upward, and below it three drops of water. This may be the hieroglyph for icno, orphaned " wid- owed ". In the lists of names of persons in the Manuscrit Mexicain number 3 of the Bibliotheque Nationale this idea is always expressed by tears (see Icnotlacatl; /, icno-ix). This document, too, in my opinion, belonged to the Botarini col- lection. In the catalogue of Boturini's Museo Indiano, under num- ber 10, section 21, are mentioned siete pedazos de mapas en papel Jndiano, de los pueblos Tezarco, Tlacoapan, Coyotepec y Tezontepec (" seven pieces of maps on Indian paper, of the villages of Tezarco, Tlacoapan, Coyotepec, and Tezontepec"). One of these seven frag- ments, therefore, Avas designated by the name of a village, Avhose name and hieroglyph were found on our fragment V (plate x). Since the nuijority of the fragments of our collection belonged, as we shall see, to the Boturini collection, it is probable that this is not an accidental coincidence. FRAGMENT VI This is a piece of agave paper of the size of a quarto sheet (dimen- sions of fragment, 20 by 21 cm.), and is covered on one side with tig-, ures and draAvings (plate xi). This is the document reproduced and described by A. von Humboldt in his Vues des Cordilleres et Monuments des Peuples indigenes de I'Amerique, under the title " Piece de proces en ecriture hieroglyphique (legal document in hiero- glyphic Avriting)." In the middle of the fragment is a ground plan of buildings. To the left of it are Avritten the Avords ciudad de Tezcuco (" city of Tezcuco "). It is therefore clear that this is the ground plan of the capital of that name situated opposite Mexico on the other shore of the lake. In the middle of the right side a path leads into, or, perhaps more correctly, from the heart of the city, as the position of the footprints shows. At right angles to the first path and parallel to the right side, near the edge, there is a path Avhich, as it seems, separates Iavo smaller quarters from the main body of the toAvn. In the center of the main part there is a large group of buildings, Avhich is doubtless me^nt to represent the palace. Most conspicuous is a square room, Avhich is entered by a door on the right. Door posts and rafters, Avhich Avere usually of Avood, are designated by their red color. Rows of c SELEK] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT VI pillars similarly painted, therefore probably of the same material, traverse the room. This corresponds exactly to what Juan Bautista de Pomar tell us of Nezahualcoyotl's palace at Tezcuco. He says that the buildings stood on raised terraces. The principal room was a hall over 20 ells in length and breadth. In the interior were many wooden pillars ^standing at intervals on stone bases, the pil- lars in their turn supporting the beams and joists: Son sobre terraplenos de un estado, lo que menos de cinco, li seis el que mas. Los principales aposentos que tenian eran unas salas de veinte brazas y mas de largo, y otras tantas en ancho, porque eran cuadrados, y en medio dellos muchos pilares de madera de trecho a trecho, sobre grandes brazas de piedra sobre las quales ponian las madres en que cargaba la demas madera (" They stand on terraces of one height, five or six. The principal apartments were halls more than 20 ells in length and of w4dth as great, because they w^ere square, and in the middle were many wooden columns at intervals upon great stones, upon which pillars rested the beams of the ceilings ") . Pomar's other statements in regard to the palace seem also to correspond with what we find drawn on our fragment. He says the entrance to these halls led from a courtyard, the ground of which was covered with a smooth layer of cement, and which was reached by a flight of steps. Besides these state apartments there were also a great number of special buildings for distinguished guests, for the women, and for the other numerous and various attendants of the palace, kitchens, closed courtyards, etc. Abia en estas casas aposentos dedicados para los reyes de Tacuba donde eran aposentados, quando a esta ciudad venian. Tenian aposentos para los demas senores inferiores del rey, sin otras muchas salas en que hacian sus audiencias y juzgados, y otras de consejos de guerra, y otras de la musica y cantos ordinarios, y otras en que vivian las mugeres, con otros muchos palacios y grandes cocinas y corrales There were in these houses apartments set apart for the kings of Tacuba, where they were lodged when they came to this city. There were apartments for all the other lords, in- ferior to the king, besides many other halls in which the}^ gave audi- ences and delivered judgment, and others for councils of war, and others for music and ordinary singing, and others in which the women lived, with many other palaces and great kitchens and courtyards "). We see in fact on our fragment a staircase leading up to these edifices. AVe see, besides the principal building, five smaller, straw-thatched houses, and also a small square room, in which posts, but no doors, are indicated, and it might therefore be a closed courtyard (corral). A few similar courtyards, adjacent to each other, are indicated on our fragment, in addition to the main congeries of buildings, the actual palace, in the upper left-hand corner of the plan. Around the sides of the main body of the town, as well as of the two 192 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 separate quarters, numerals have been set down : single marks, which must mean ones; groups of five marks, of which, however, there are never more than three sets ; and black circles, which must necessarily mean twenties, and therefore stand here in the place of the little flag Avhich is generally the sign employed for the numeral 20. Where more than five black circles occur five of them are connected by a line, the number 100 being thus emphasized. Besides these numerals, wherever space allows there is the draAving of the heart, yollotl, that is literally, yol-yo-tl, having life so familiar in Mexican paintings. Hence, it is clear that living beings, the human souls actually present in the city, are being counted here. If we sum up, beginning on the right side at the bottom, Ave have the following numbers for the main body of the town : 96, 86, 148, 79, 158, 155, or a total of 722 per- sons. In tlie upper of the tAvo separate quarters of the town the number is incomplete on the right side, the twenties being destroyed. On the other tAvo sides, beginning beloAv on the left, Ave have the figures 86 and 48; total, 134 persons. For the loAver of the two separate quarters, on the right, left, and loAver sides we have 84, 95, and 50; total, 229 j^ersons. If Ave increase the second sum to the amount of the third by Avay of supplementing it w^ith the missing numbers, the total Avould amount to slightly less than 1,200. Are Ave to suj^pose that this Avas the amount of the entire population of Tez- cuco? I think not. The po2)ulation had indeed greatly dimin- ished after the concpiest. While formerly, says Ixtlilxochitl, the smallest village in the district of Tezcuco had 1,100 heads of house- holds or more, as is proA^ed by the ancient doomsday books and lists of inhabitants, they now numbered scarcely 200, and some families had died out entirely. I do not think, hoAvever, that at the time to Avhich Ave must attribute this page the number of inhabitants in the caj^ital could haA^e dAvindled to 1,200. This very passage quoted from Ixtlilxochitl proves beyond a doubt that our fragment (plate xi) does not contain an enumeration of individuals, but only of heads ofjiouse- holds (vecinos). Therefore, for the period in. Avhich ouF^agment was Avritten, we ought to have a population of about 7,000, which is probably in accordance Avith the true condition of things. I would further remark that the special arrangement of the num- bers in this plan of the city probably oAves its origin to the distribu- tion of the inhabitants into quarters, or gentes (barrio, calpulli). Each separate tally probably corresponds to a separate calpulli, of Avhich we must suppose that there Avere six in the main body of the town and three in each of the tAvo detached quarters. Around the plan of the town are seven sitting figures, six Span- iards and one Mexican. A. von Humboldt already correctly under- stood and has admirably characterized the general meaning of the proceeding Avhich is thus represented. He errs only in regarding the SELKR] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT VI 193 plan of the city in the middle of the picture, which, as we have seen, is that of the city of Tezcuco, as the ground plan of an ordinary estate and as the object in dispute. He says in Vue des Cordilleres et Monu- ments des peuples indigenes d'Amerique, page 56 : Le tableau qui presente la douzieme Planche parait indiquer un proces entre des naturels et des Espagnols. L'objet en litige est une metaine, dont on voit le dessin en projection orthographique. On y reconnoit le grand chemin marque par les traces des pieds; des maisons dessinees en profil; un Indien dont le nom indique un arc; et des juges espa- gnoles assis sur des chaises, et ayant les lois devant leurs yeux. L'Es- pagnol place immediatement au-dessus de I'lndien, s'appelle pro- bablement Aquaverde, car I'hieroglyphe de I'eau, peint en verd, se trouve figure derriere sa tete. Les langues sont tres inegalement reparties dans ce tableau. Tout y annonce I'etat d'un pays conquis; I'indigene ose a peine defendre sa cause, tandis que les etrangers a longues barbes y parlent beaucoup et a haut voix, comme descendans d'un peuple conquerant (" The picture seen in the twelfth plate seems to indicate a Islw suit between the natives and the Spanish. The object of the dispute is a farm, a plan of which we see. We see the high road marked out by footprints, houses drawn in profile, an Indian whose name means a bow, and the Spanish judges seated on chairs, with the laws before them. The Spaniard immediately above the Indian is probably named iVquaverde, for the hieroglyph for water, painted green, figures behind his head. The tongues are very unequally distributed in this picture. Everything declares it to be a conquered country. The native hardly ventures to plead his cause, while the long-bearded strangers talk much and in loud voices, like descendants of a conquering race "). The three figures on the left side of the page are undoubtedly three judges, in fact the president of the audiencia and the two oydores. We must thus explain the relation in which the three stand to one another, for the jvidge in the middle is distinguished from the other two by a richer cap. The illustration as a whole corresponds per- fectly with the manner in which the oydores are represented in the Pintura del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico (Osuna codex). The chair and the staff are their badges of office (see A, figure 43, the picture of Doctor Horozco, oydor, from page 3 [465] of the above-mentioned manuscript). The papers lying before them are probably not meant for the statute books, but for the written rec- ords of the suit. It is worthy of note that there are absolutely unin- telligible characters on these papers. They represent the confused impression of writing made on one Avho can not read. The two men sitting beside the Mexican are his vouchers, the witnesses summoned 7238— No. 28—05 13 194 BUREAU OP AMEBIC AN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 by him. The Spaniard on the opposite (the upper) side of the fragment, who turns his head away and answers at great length, is evidently the defendant, who denies the accusation brought against him. There were hieroglyphs behind all these persons, except the second witness. Unfortunately those behind two of the judges are destroyed. One of the persons can be identified beyond a doubt by these hiero- glyphs. This is the Mexican. Behind him is the figure of a bow (tlauitolli) as his name hieroglyph. It is apparent that he occupied a high position among the natives, that he must have been of royal rank, for he is represented sitting on the tepotzoicpalli, the straw chair with a high back. Noav, we actually know, that in the middle of the sixteenth centurj^ men by the name of Tlauitol, descendants of the old Tezcucan royal family, ruled in Tezcuco. Chimalpahin mentions one, San Antonio Pimentel Tlauitoltzin, whom he calls the son of King Nezahualpilli, Avho died in 1515 — Torquemada describes him as the grandson of Nezahualpilli — who was installed as king (tlahtouani) of Tezcuco- Aculhuacan in the year 1540 by the Span- iards, and died in 1564 after reigning twenty-five years. This state- ment is uncjuestionably based on an error. In the Sahagun manu- script, which was written in the year 2 Acatl, that is, 1559, Don An- tonio Tlauitoltzin is mentioned as the twelfth king of Tezcuco, the seventh after Nezahualpilli, and it is stated that he reigned six years. And after that Don Hernando Pimentel is mentioned as the thirteenth king of Tezcuco, his Mexican name being luian, that is, " the mild " the modest a word which is reproduced in the name hieroglyph accompanying the picture of this king by two bare feet, perhaps ex- pressing " chi va piano, va sano ". The latter at the time that this was Avritten (in the 3^ear 2 Acatl, or A. D. 1559) must already have reigned fifteen years, and therefore have come to the throne in 1545. The six years during which Don Antonio Pimentel Tlauitoltzin was said to have reigned must have been the years 1540-1545. Chimal- pahin has evidently merged the periods of rule of these two men into one. Of Don Antonio Pimentel Tlauitoltzin we know from Torquemada, who mentions him in various places, that he was a quiet, sensible man, who devoted himself with sj^ecial interest to collecting and writing down the ancient traditions of his family and his race. Torquemada possessed a " Memorial " written by him, in which he gives an account « of ancient things, en estilo de historia, al modo que usamos nosotros ("in historic style, in the manner which we use"). Juan Bautista de Pomar says of him, that he cultivated mulberry trees and bred silkworms, that in his ( Pomar 's) time, that is, in the year 1582, there were still mulberry trees in the vicinity of Tezcuco, y en <* Mpnarquia Indiana, v. 16, chap. 19. seler] MEXICAN PICTUKE WRITINGS EKA.CIMENT VI 195 tiempo antiguo la cogia (la seda) Don Antonio Tlaiiitoltzin cacique y gobernador que fue de esta ciudad, liijo de Nezahualpiltzintli (" and in ancient times Don Antonio Tlauitoltzin, who was cacique and governor of that city, son of Nezahualpiltzintli, gathered it (the silk)^')- It is not so easy to determine the other persons on our fragment. Since Tlauitoltzin only reigned until the year 1545, the event to Avhich our fragment refers must have occurred before that date. At tliat time the viceroy, Don Antonio de Mendoza, was still reigning — from the year 1534. The bishop of Santo Domingo, Don Sebastian Eamirez de Fuenleal, was president of the audiencia until 1535. His oydores were the licenciados Juan de Salmeron, Alonzo Maldo- nado, Zeynos (or Zaynos, as it is also written), afterwards president of the audiencia, and Quiroga." The names of Spaniards w^ere fre- quently reproduced by the Mexicans in hieroglyphs, which are often perfectly intelligible, but often too A^ery hard to understand and, without doubt, frequently do not represent the name itself, but a nickname by which the person in question was known among the Indians. It is well known that Pedro de Alvarado went by the name Tonatiuh, " sun among the Indians. He is therefore hieroglyph- ically designated b}^ a picture of the sun. The viceroy Antonio de Mendoza is designated in Codex Telleriano-Remensis by a spear, k, figure 43; the third viceroy, Luis de Velasco, in the Pintura del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico (Osuna codex), by Z, which is composed of the tongue of eloquence, an eye, and, above it, another object, difficult to explain. The name Gallego is expressed in the same manuscript by m, and that of Doctor Vasco de Poga by n. Both are easily understood. In //r Ave haA^e the figures of a house (cal-li) and of beans (e-tl), or Cal-e; and n is explained by the fact that poc-tli in Mexican means " smoke ". The hieroglyph for Doctor Zorita, /', the head of a quail, is also j^erfectly obvious, because col-in is the Mexican Avord for quail. But o for Doctor Villanueva, and p for Doctor Villalobos still puzzle me; so does q for Doctor BraA^o. The hieroglyph, for Doctor Zeynos seems to represent the prickly point of a leaf, and the hieroglyph for the fiscal Maldonado, is the picture of a pair of Avooden tongs and a red (red-hot?) object Avhich is held in their grasp. Lastly, the hieroglyph for Doctor Horozco, 7i, is most strikingly like that of San Francisco, /. Most of the hieroglyphs Avhich I haA^e mentioned here belong to j^ersons of a later time than that to AAhich our fragment VI (plate xi) belongs. Unfortunately, but fcAv hieroglyphs of Spanish names of this earlier period are positively known to us, and they are not to be interpreted at haphazard, as can readily be seen from the examples just given. " MotoUnia, v. 3, chap. 3. 196 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 It still remains to discuss the pictures on our page (plate xi) , which are on the left of the plan of the city, directly in front of the presid- ing magistrate. Two of them, the two circles, painted bluish green in the original and filled in with irregular squares, are perfectly clear. They represent turquoise mosaic and have the phonetic value of Xiutl, that is, " year " (see page 160). We must conclude that the occurrence which is treated of here took place two years before, or else that the trial lasted two years. The other object is not so easily interpreted. It looks like a bag or a bottle-shaped vessel. A stick or pipe is apparently joined to it above, and a fine thread seems also to be fastened to it. The inside is entirely filled with wavy red lines. Although various suggestions occur to me, I do not venture to express a definite opinion in regard to the meaning of this object. Fragment VI (plate xi) seems to have belonged to Boturini's col- lection and to be described by him in his Museo Indiano, number 7, section 3. He says there Otro mapa en una quartilla de papel Indiano, donde se ve pintada la ciudad de Tetzcoco, con unas cifras, que especifican su extension en lo antiguo ("Another map of a quarter sheet of Indian paper, where we see the city of Tezcuco, painted with figures, which specify its size in old times"). Our page, too, is a map in (piarto (un maj^a en una quartilla de papel Indiano), and has a picture of the city of Tetzcoco, and numerals are inscribed upon it, as we have seen, only they do not indicate the size of the city, as Boturini here supposes, but the number of its inhabitants. FRAGMENT VII This (plate xii) is a strip of agave paper, 25 cm. long and about 18 cm. wide, with four rows of writmg\beginning below at the right, a fifth row l)eing only indicated. On the right side of the divisions are circles. One of them, that in the fourth row from the bottom is painted red and contains a ver- ticillate design, a kind of two-armed swastika. This undoubtedly means a Sunday. In accordance with this the circles at the right end of the lower divisions must likew^ise mean days, and since the progression is upward Ave should have Thursday in the lowest divi- sion, Friday in the second, and Saturday in the third from the bot- tom. In accordance with this, Friday would be characterized by the circle, the upper half of which is painted black. This would be comprehensible. It was the day of Christ's crucifixion and a fast day commanded by the church. Thursday and Saturday would be alike designated, to wit, by a circle with a kind of arrow on it. I think that this was only a hieroglyph for a working or week day. « Place cited, p. 5. BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 28 PLATE XII MEXICAN PAINTING-HUMBOLDT FRAGMENT VII SKLKR] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS — FRAGMENT VII 197 Inside in the lowest row, between fishes, were baskets woven of straw (painted yellow), apparently of pliable material, each of which in this lowest row rests on a fiat disk having three feet. These are apparentl}^ the little baskets in which hot tortillas were brought. Last, on the left, folloAV bundles, apparently meant to represent q • r s t Fig. 44. Mexican symbols of various objects. zacatl, " green cornstalks ", which have been used in preference for horse fodder from the time of the conquest to the present day (see <7, 1 and 2, figure 44, the former taken from the Goupil-Boban atlas, plate 27, the latter from the Pintura del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico, and both described in the text as Zacatl). 198 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 In the topmost roAV (on Sunday) there is a turkey, the Sunday roast, instead of the fishes. For the better understanding of the somewhat crude drawing I have reproduced in figure 44, the rather more carefully drawn head from tlie Goupil-Boban atlas, plate 27, which is there expressly mentioned in the text as " gallina de la tierra ". Above these objects, which represent food for man and beast, are various figures: Small flags wdiich designate the numeral 20 and groups of small circles, each of which means 1, and also larger circles, which are either empty or contain one or two small circles (plate xii). These large circles, which in the more carefully drawn manuscripts are always painted blue, signify money, silver coin, and in respect to this there is indeed an unvarying style of designation observable. The old Spanish coin Avas the peso, which was divisible into 8 reals, knoAvn in Mexican as tomin. Half a real was a medio, and half of that a quartillo. The Indians divided the latter once more. For this smallest fractional coin there is no Spanish name, only the Mexican tlaco, " half '\ The peso was sometimes represented in Mexican paint- ings by the scale pan of a balance, answering to its name, " weight (r^ figure 44), but usually by a blue circle with a cross on it, apparently from the stamp which at that time was impressed upon silver money. It is very rarely that any other stamp occurs (see, for instance, e, from the Osuna codex, pages 30 [492] and 31 [493]). Reals, or tomines, were designated by a blue circle, containing as many small circles as there were reals to be represented. Usually not more than four small circles were inscribed within one circle, that is, 4 reals, equal to half a peso. Only, when the pesos were not specially mentioned, but^a^ of ten happened, and in spite of the new dollar and centavo system still often happens, the sum was reckoned in reals, then we find within the blue circle as many as eight small cir- cles (see /). The medio, on the contrary, Avas designated by a real cut in halves (see d). Thus r (Osuna codex) is explained in the text as 1 peso ypan 6 tomines, 1 peso and reals; and d, taken from the same manuscript, as ompohualli pesos ypan 7 tomines ypan medio, that is, twice 20 pesos, 7 reals, and 1 medio. In our fragment VII (plate xii) the price of the turkey (quaxolotl, guajolote) in the top row has the highest number of figures; for it is marked 2 reals. All the rest are marked 1 real. For this reason the large circles seem to be used here very often alone,, without the small inner circles. According to the prices noted here, 2 bundles or loads of zacate, 20 tortillas, and 8 fishes were sold, respectively, for 1 real. The fishes can not, therefore, have been of any great size. Since, therefore, we find days set down on our fragment VII, and within the days provisions and fodder with their ])rices, it is clear that this fragment must be a bill. This is proved by the writing which I SELER] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT VII 199 had the pleasure of discovering on the reverse of the paper after having separated the leaf from its backing. These words are written there : Resebi yo micuel mayordomo de la comunidad deste pueblo de misquiaguala del senor manuel de olvera dos pesos q. monto en comida desta pintura en quatro de fevrero de mill y q^ y setenta y un anos. Miguel de Sanc Jti". ante mi Juan de p . (" I, Miguel, major-domo of the community of this village of Miz- quiyauallan, received from Seiior Manuel de Olvera 2 pesos, the price of the provisions, which are here depicted, on February 4, 1571. Miguel de S. Juan. Before me, Juan de p .") (I can not wholly decij^her this signature.) The village of Mizquiyauallan lies in the district of Actopan of the state of Hidalgo. The name means " where the mesquite trees (algaroba, Prosopis juliflora) stand in a circle '\ It is therefore rep- resented hieroglyphically by a mesquite tree bent in the shape of the bow (see ^, figure 41), but occasionally merely by a mesquite tree, or a mountain with a mesquite tree upon it, h. The place w^as in the Otomi territory and was early subject to the Mexican kings. On the tribute list it is in the group Axocopan between the towns of Tezcatepec and Itzmiquilpan. In the Pintura del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico (Osuna codex), it is mentioned with these and other places in the same region, but Mizquiyauallan was subject to double authority, for it was a domain of the crown and had an encomendro besides (see 7^, taken from the manuscript just named, where this double relation is expressed b}^ the croAvn over the hieroglyph and the head of a Spaniard beside it). The major- domo who signed the receipt quoted above was no doubt responsible to the croAvn. As for the persons themselves, I can not decipher the name of the official in whose presence the act was executed. In a and figure 47, I have reproduced the signatures of the witness and the receipting major-domo from tracings which I made. We shall later meet again with the Manuel de Olvera mentioned in the text. The major-domo was undoubtedly an Indian. Family names like this, borrowed from a saint (or a diocese?), are often encountered in the lists of names of persons. I would draw attention to the fact that the sum of 2 pesos, mentioned in the receipt, is the actual amount obtained if we add the 200 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 reals marked on fragment VII (plate xii). In the lowest row there are 5, in the second 3, in the third 5, and in the fourth again 3 ; in all, 16 reals or 2 pesos. I shall show later that another page of our collection, fragment VIII (plate XIII ) can be proved to have come from the same village. This latter fragment, as I shall show later on, is most closely related to one of the manuscripts which passed from the collection of the Hon Joel E. Poinsett, former minister to Mexico from the United States, into the possession of the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia, and was published in the Transactions of that society (new series, volume 12, 1892, article 4). It is interesting to note that our fragment VII (plate xii) should also find its exact parallel in a piece in that collection. The latter is designated by the editors as Tribute Roll (Calendar 2). Here, too, the page is divided by hori- zontal lines into a series of consecutive divisions. On the right is a day, invariably designated by a disk, Sunday by a red disk with a, three-armed verticillate design (?*, figure 44). Then follow various articles of food, with their prices; but the bill of fare is somewhat enlarged. Besides turkey, painted red (/»•, same figure), fish (Z), a little basket of tortillas (n), and bundles of zacate (s), we have in f still another cheap article of food, of which eighty are marked at 1 real, but to which I can not at present give a name; in q we tipparently have baskets of tamales (a kind of dumpling Avith a filling, which was steamed in a w^rapper of corn husks) , eight of which were sold for 3 reals; in m, some articles of food painted red, possibly chile con carne, four of which cost 1 real; in r, a fanega of Indian corn for 3 reals (see and (/,^tgttrfe 46) ; and in 6>, an article of diet with which I am unacquainted, which was sold for 2 reals. Finally, in two squares there are figures of Spaniards (^, figure 44). It seems highly probable that this page belongs to the same date and same region as our fragment VII (plate xii). It is very probable that our fragment VII (plate xii) likewise once belonged to the Boturini collection. The catalogue of Boturini's Museo Indiano mentions under number 1, section 21 : Tres mapas en papol Indiano como faxas. Tratan de los tributos que pagaba el pueblo de Mizquiahuallan, y en el se ven las cifras numericas de cada cosa que entregaban los vecinos (" Three maps on Indian paper like strips of ribbon. They treat of the tribute paid by the village of Mizquiahuallan, and in them are the numerical figures of everything which householders furnished "). FRAGMENT VIII This is a strip of agave paper, 33 cm. long, 22 cm. wide, much injured at the edges and in the middle by folding, and imperfect at the upper left corner (plate xiii). On the upper side of the fragment BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY MEXICAN PAINTING-HUr BULLETIN 28 PLATE XIII DLDT FRAGMENT VIII SELER] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT VIII 201 there are drawings, done with a fine pen, most of which are touciied lip with colors. On the left side are heads of men. Behind each is a hieroglyph, which gives the name of the man in question, and in front of each is the wooden implement used for field work, known as uictli, or couauacatl (see t and ii, figure 37) . These persons are thus marked as husbandmen. Before each person is a row of fields with quad- rangular boundaries, on the sides of which are numbers similar to those which we encountered on fragment VI (plate xi). The num- bers on the opposite sides of the fields, as far as can be determined, are alike, except in some minute particulars. This shows that these were meant for pieces of arable land with quadrangular boundaries. There are hieroglyj^hs on the upper boundary and on the surface of the fields which are repeated in the difi^erent rows. In some of the fields, in the lower right-hand corner, there is also a representa- tion of grass (zacatl), painted yellow (see a, figure 36), and on the last field of the first row, in the upper right-hand corner, is the picture of a house (calli), and also in the first and second field in the third row. Finally, the name of the respective person is written with a coarse pen beside each head. From the character of the drawing and the structure of the hieroglyphs this fragment (plate xiii) resembles most closely the so-called Vergara codex. That is a manuscript mentioned by Boturinj in his Museo Indiano, now in the Aubin- Goupil collection, consisting (originally) of 56 pages, which gives the statistics of the villages of Calcantlaxiuhcan, Topotitlan, Patla- chiuhcan, Teocaltitlan, and Texcalticpac. The heads of families and their descendants are set down first, then lists of the persons in each village (tlacatlacuilolli) ,the lands claimed by individuals (milcocolli) , and of what was allotted to individuals at the time of the adjustment (tlauelmantli). On the first (originally the second) page the remark " 1539, marques del valle virey " has been added evidently later, by another hand. But this note has probably as little value as those added on j^ages 21 and 22, where a certain Don Augustin de Rosas asserts his claim to the estates of Tzilaquauhtepoztlanallan. At the end stands the name Pedro Vasquez de Vergara, possibly the name of some one who had the manuscript in his possession. The manuscript has usually been cited under his name since Aubin's time. On those pages of that manuscript which treat of the distribution of lands the heads of persons, with their names and hieroglyphs, are depicted in exactly the same way as on our fragment VIII (plate xiii) , and beside them, in rows, are the fields, those claimed by them or those which were assigned to them (Goupil-Boban atlas, plate 39. See a, h, and c, figure 45, which are taken therefrom) . In the Vergara codex the numbers which giA^e the dimensions are placed on only one of the long, vertical, and on one of the short, horizontal, sides of the fields, and there are hieroglyphs only in the middle of the fields, but 202 BUKEAU OP AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 not, as on our fragment VIII (plate xiii), on the upper boundary as well. There is still another document on the left side of which persons are depicted and, opposite them, the fields belonging to them, in the same way as in our fragment. This is page 34 of the Goupil-Boban atlas. Here, too, as in the Vergara codex, the dimensional figures are on only two sides of the square. But, as in our fragment (plate xiii), hiero- glyphs are drawn on the upper boundary of the fields, or beside it, and there are additional designations which make it evident that these hieroglyphs represent the name of the field or piece of arable land. IP IP IP IP f i k I m Fig. 45. Mexican glyphs denoting various objects. Moreover, the word chinamitl, inclosed field ", or milli, " arable land ", is often quite superfluously written beside them (see d, /, figure 45) . Comparison with these manuscripts, I think, leaves no room for doubt as to the general meaning of our fragment VIII (plate xiii) . I will now resume the discussion of its separate features. The dimensional numbers, w^hich are written on four sides of the fields, are, as I have already said, the same on the two opposite sides. Their construction and characteristic features are exactly the came as those which Ave have already seen in the plan of the city of Tez- cuco on fragment VI (plate xi) of our collection. There, as here, seler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS \ FRAGMENT VIII 203 twenties are denoted by black dots, ones by lines ; groups of five ones are connected by a line; and Avhere there are more tlian five twenties the first five are also connected by a line to form the number 100. We have the same system of notation in the Vergara codex, a to and on page 34 of the Goupil-Boban atlas, d to /, except that here the twen- ties are usually denoted by a black dot and a little flag, the four hun- dreds by a black dot and a sign resembling a pinnated leaf, which is the symbol for tzontli, " four hundred " (literally, " hair But on this page, too, twenties are denoted simply by black dots, g and //. On fragment VI of our collection the souls were counted. Therefore we saw, preceding the numbers, the picture of a heart (yollotli), expres- sive of the conception " life " (yol) or " soul ". On fragment VIII (plate xiii)we should expect to find, preceding the figures, the picture of some unit of measure. And this is actually the case. We find, pre- ceding the numbers, the picture of a hand. This is in the first, sec- ond, and fifth fields of the third row. But in other fields, preceding the numbers, we find a picture resembling an arrowhead. This occurs in the fourth field of the upper row (the front of which is incomplete), in the last field in the second row, in the fifth field in the third row, and in the first and second fields of the fourth row. I have interpreted this picture, from its appearance, to be an arrow- head. That it is actually intended for one is, in my opinion, fully proved b}^ the fact that in the first field of the fourth row the arrow- head, which Ave see on the upper side, is replaced on the lower side by the hieroglyph tecpatl, " flint ", that is, by the material from which arrowheads were made. We also find the hand as a unit of length on page 3i of the Goupil- Boban atlas, where the dimensions of the estate or village of Tzom- pantitlan are given (see figure 45) .'^ The hand as a unit of measure is readily understood. For ma-itl means not only the hand, but also the arm, the forearm, including the hand. The use of the hand, there- fore, might denote either an arm's length or an ell. In fact, Molina's vocabulary gives cem-matl( literally defines, ^' an arm ")by " una braca para medir ", that is, an ell. I have not found the arrow elsewhere as a unit of length. But that it w^as actually used as such is again proved by Molina's vocabulary, Avhere we find cem-mitl, " an arrow^ ", trans- lated by " medida desde el un codo hasta la otra mano ", that is, the measure from one elbow to the tip of the other hand, a somewhat longer measure, therefore, than the former, equal to about 2 ells. 1 think it possible, however, that the tAVo symbols, the hand and the arrow, both refer to one and the same customary unit employed to measure distance. " Let me draw attention, in passing, to the interesting form whicli tliis liierolglyph has here. The element tzompan is usually expressed by the wooden framework tzompantli, upon which the heads of the sacrificed victims were exhibited. But here it is expressed by the tree tzompanquauitl (Erythrina corallodendron) , 204 BUREAU OF AMERICAK ETHNOLOGY [HULL. 28 As for the hieroglyphs, those on the upper side of the fiekls undoubtedly stand for the names of the boundaries of the land. They are repeated in the separate rows of fields belonging to one owner, because they do not denote the individual field, but the domain within which it lies. In exactly the same way, on page 34 of the Goupil-Boban atlas, the same names of domains recur above and beside the fields which are set down in rows after the various owners. In our fragment eight different domains seem to be given. The first one is the same in all the rows (plate xiii) and is desig- nated by the picture of a house above the field. The house in the fourth row is drawn Avith a high, pointed, straw roof (painted yel- low), that is, like the xacalli, which we saw in fragment II (plate vii). The others are apparently meant to represent the adobe houses with flat roofs of beams, known as tlapechcalli (see ^, figure 45, taken from page 34 of the Goupil-Boban atlas). The layer of beams form- ing the roof is marked here by red paint, like doorposts and the frames of doors, which were always made of wood « and were therefore always painted red or brown. The second field in the third row (which is the most perfect) has a hieroglyph at tlie top which represents the head of a coyote between two streams of water. This domain ma}^, therefore, have been called Coyoapan. The name of this domain is set down over the last field in the first row. The third field in the third row has no hieroglyph at the top. Perhaps the same one should be here Avhich is over the fourth field in the second row and over the second field in the fourth row, and also over the third field in the row to the right of the fragment (plate xiii). It consists of a flag and two rows of teeth. The name of the domain may have been Pantlan or Pancamac. Over the second field in the fourth roAV there is a stream of water in addition to the flag. The hieroglyph over the fourth field in the third row is somewhat effaced ; but I think that it is meant for the same hieroglyph that is over the fourth field in the first roAV, and over the third field in the second row, which consists of the picture of a hand and a stream of water. The same liieroglyph probably occurred also over the third field in the fourth row. In its ])lace there is a hole in the page, and the edge of the paper is somewhat turned down; but the stream of water belonging to this fourth hieroglyph is still plainly discernible under the turned-down edge. The fifth field in the third row has above it a hieroglyph, which occurs nowhere else in what is preserved of the other rows. It con- sists of a fruit tree, a small flag, and a stream of water. The hieroglyph over the sixth field in the third row consists of the symbol zaca-tl, ''grass" (painted yelloAv), and a stream of water. « See J. Bautista Pomar, Relacion de Tetzcoco, manuscript. SELER] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT VIII 205 It is evidently the same hieroglyph as that over the foiii-th field in the fourth row, which, in addition to the grass and water, has also a set of teeth (tlan-tli, " tooth ") and a small flag (pan-tli). The seventh hieroglyph occurs in all four rows. It is over the sixth field in the first, the fifth field in the second, tlie seventh field in the third, and the sixth field in the fourth row. It consists of a green bush and a stream of water. The eighth hieroglyph likeivise occurs in all of the four rows: in the seventh field of the first, the sixtii field of the second, the eighth of the third, and the fifth field of the fourth row. It is the picture of a bird. Another separate domain may possibly be designated over the sec- ond field of the row on the unfinished right side. A small flag is recognizable. Whatever else may have been there is now obliterated. We see, then, that the hieroglyphs over the fields, which, it seems tol- erably certain, represent the names of the domains, exhibit a consid- erable variety. We have been able to count eight or nine of them. Of the hierogl3^phs on the surface of the fields, only three kinds can be distinguished, which, as will appear immediately, must have been intended to express various qualities of soil. The first presents the hieroglyph te-tl, " stone ", and a series of fine dots proceeding from it, undoubtedly indicating sand (xalli). (See /i, figure 45, xalpan milli, that is, the arable field, xalpan, " in the sand Goupil-Bobaii atlas, page 34.) This hieroglyph, then, would denote stony, sandy soil, which the Mexicans called tetlalli xallalli. The second hieroglyph which we see, for instance, in the second field of the third row, shoAvs the picture of a maize plant (toctli), with the tassel (painted yellow) at the top and the ear (painted red) having long drooping bunches of silk lower down at the left of the stalk. Beside it, on the right, is a stream of w^ater (a-tl) and below it a row of teeth (tlan-tli). These three elements together give the word atoctlan, that is, "rich in a-toctli (fertile vegetable mold)." Compare Sahagun, volume 2, chapter 12, section 3 : A la tierra fertil para sembrar, y donde se hace mucho lo que se siembra en ella, llaman a-toctli, que quiere clecir, tierra que el agua ha traido: es blanca, suelta, hueca y suave; es tierra donde se hace mucho maiz 6 trigo (" earth fertile to sow seed in, and w4iere that which is sowed increases greatly, they call a-toctli, which is to say, earth which the water has brought: it is light, loose, rich, and smooth; it is earth which pro- duces much corn or wheat "). It is, however, possible that the row^ of teeth here is not meant to express the whole syllable " tlan ", but only " tla ", in which case it might stand for tlalli, " earth ", so that we should have atoc-tlalli. This seems to me probable on account of what follows. 206 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BOLL. 28 The third hieroglyph, which occurs, for instance, in the fifth field of the third row, shows at the top a tree (quan-itl), below it a jug (com-itl), and below that the row of teeth (tlan-tli) ; these ele- ments give us the word quauh-con-tlan, or quauh-con-tlalli, and the latter may perhaps be resolved into quauhtlalli, contlalli. Quauh- tlalli is wood soil. Sahagun says, volume 2, chapter 12, section 3 : Hay otra manera de tierra fertil, donde se hace muy bien el maiz y trigo, llamanla quauhtlalli, que quiere decir, tierra que esta estercolada con maderos j^odridos, es suelta, aitiarilla, y hueca there is another sort of fertile soil, in which corn and wheat flourish very well, they call it quauhtlalli, which is to say, earth which has been manured with rotten wood, it is soft, rich, and golden"). And contlalli is clay. Sahagun says, volume 2, chapter 12, section 5 : Hay barro en esta tierra para hacer loza y basijas, es muy bueno y muy pegajoso; amasanla con aquellos pelos de los tallos de las espadahas, y llamase texoquitl y contlalli : de este barro se hacen comales, escudillas, platos, y toda manera de loza (" there is clay in this earth for making tiles and pots, it is very good and very easily molded; they knead it with fibers of the shoots of reed mace, and they call it texoquitl and con- tlalli : of this clay they make plates, bowls, dishes, and all manner of pottery The same earth is described in the preceding section 3, as follows: Hay otra (tierra) pegajosa bueiui para hacer barro de paredes y suelos para los tlapancos; es fertil, pues se hace bien el maiz y trigo there is another kind (of earth) good to mold so as to make clay for walls and floors for the tlapancos; it is fertile, since corn and wheat do Avell in it ''). The three hieroglyphs in the center of the fields would there- fore denote sandy or stony soil, vegetable mold, and clayey soil. It is to be noted that the hieroglyphs on the upper side of the fields and those in the middle of the fields always have a certain regular relation to each other, that is, the various domains shoAV a distinct qual- ity of soil. Thus domain 1 has sandy soil : 2 has vegetable mold ; 3 has sandy soil ; in 4 vegetable mold is given in three cases, but in the third field of the fourth row, if it belongs to this domain, is a clayey soil; domain 5 has clayey soil; domain 6, likewise partly vegetable mold, partly clay ; domain 7 has vegetable mold throughout ; domain 8, nothing but clayey soil. On the last page of the A^ergara codex, the third of those pages of that manuscript Avhich are reproduced in the Goupil-Boban atlas (plate 39), the quality of the soil in the fields is likewise stated, and it seems in every case to be partly stoney and partly sandy soil (see 6, and c, figure 45). Before every row of fields on our fragment (plate xiii), and also on page 34 of the Goupil-Boban atlas and in the Vergara codex, there is a drawing of the person who is declared to be the owner of the fields SKLEUj MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT Vlll 207 ill (iiiestion. These persons, as 1 have said, are designated phiinly, not only by a hieroglyph, but also by the name written beside it. Here, therefore, it is eas}^ to decipher the hieroglyphs. But it should be noticed that, as a matter of course, the Spanish name is not taken into account. Moreover, we must omit some letters, which stand after the names and are probably an abbreviation of a Nauatl word. xVfter the names of the persons in the second and third row we read the syllables omo; after those of the person in the fourth row and of the one on the right of the fragment, the syllables aya°. I am inclined to regard the latter as an abbreviation of ayamo, " not yet and, accord- ingly, the former must be an abbreviation of omotlali, " he was installed ", " he has been confirmed ", or something similar. The hieroglyphs are of complex structure, and the pictures em- ployed, like those in the Vergara codex, are not always used according to the full value of their syllables, so that there is presented a phase of transition from the old symbolic and syllabic mode of Avriting to a kind of phonetic writing. The first person, the one in the second row, according to the explan- ator}^ note, bears the name Damian xotlanj. The hieroglyph is com- posed of some flowers, two roAvs of teeth, and the figure of a sitting man. The floAvers (xoch-tli) give the syllable xo ; the teeth (tlantli), the syllable tlan. The seated man I take to mean omotlalli, " he was installed into Avhich, as I said, the omo after the name xotlani should be expanded. The second person, the one in the third row, bears the name Luys Netlacahujl. The hierogl3^ph shoAvs us a doll, a roAv of teeth, a basket of tamales (filled dumplings made of Indian corn), and a utensil like a skillet. Beside it is the same seated figure. The doll (nenetl) gives the syllable ne; the teeth (tlan-tli), the syllable tla. The tamales and the skillet, Avhich is doubtless supposed to be filled Avith chili, or red pepper, sauce giA^e the syllable cauil. Nino tlacauilia (deriA^ed from caua, " to stay behind ") means " I keep something for myself ", or " I am taking a meal netlacauiliztli, " the meal (meri- enda)". The person seated is again to be taken as an expression of omo, that is, omotlali, " he Avas installed ". The name of the person in the fourth roAV is Pedro Ylhuj. The hieroglyph is a remarkably couAentionalized repeated ATrticillate figure in bright colors, red and yellow with a blue diagonal part, and a yellow feather. Here the yelloAv feather probably denotes an ele- ment not expressed in the name as it is Avritten. The man's name may really have been Ilhuitoz, for toztli is the yelloAv parrot feather (or one artificial^ dyed yelloAv). The front part consists of two squares, each of Avhich shoAvs tAvo little tongues put together after the manner of a sAvastika, or fylfot, Avhich is undoubtedly meant, like h 208 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 i\nd figure 46, to express the word il-hui-tl, that is, " the sun's orb day ", " festival I drew attention to this figure some years ago," but did not at that time interpret it correctly. It occurs oh Mexican sculptures in the Berlin Royal Museum of Ethnology (Z, figure 45) on the piece opposite the picture of the chalchiuitl, the luminous, bril- liant bead of jadeite. This simple verticillate symbol (n, sanje fig- ure) also occurs on the celestial shields in Maya manuscripts in connection with all sorts of variants of the sun hieroglyph, o. The last person on the imperfect right side of the fragment is called, in the accompanying note, Antonio Totoli Pilhuehue. Totol i-pil means " the young turkey ", and this is expressed in the hiero- m )i o P 9. Fig. 46. Mexican symbols for various articles. glyph by the picture of a bird with short wings. But I am not clear as to the other element below it or what syllable it is meant to express. From all that we can make out and determine on fragment VIII (plate XIII ) , it is perfectly obvious that it is very closely analogous, on the one hand, to our fragment VI (plate xi) and, on the other hand, to page 34 of the Goupil-Boban atlas and the so-called Vergara codex. The most striking characteristic of all these manuscripts is the pecul- iar s^^stem of notation — the ones being denoted by marks instead of dots and always combined in groups of five — and also the complicated « Zeitschrift fur Ethnologie, 1888, v. 20, pp. 53 and 55. sjoLEK] MEXICAK PICTURE WRITINGS FRAflMKNTS IX-XII 209 coiupositiou of the hierog*l3q)lis, which ai)pr<)xiinates sylhihic and |)h()- netic writing. All the manuscripts of this kind seem to liave origin- ated within the boundaries of the ancient kingdom of Tezcuco, and it seems that this local element, rather than the time of their origin, ought to be taken into account in explaining these peculiar features, for the Pintura del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico (Osuna codex), which is later than our fragment VI (i)late xi), counts with dots instead of marks. We know that Te/cuco was anciently regarded as the seat of refined culture and of a certain kind of scholarship ; but Tezcuco was also the first to adapt its native ele- ments, in a certain measure, to the customs and civilization of the foreign conqueror. As long, therefore, as the same peculiar features occur in the manuscripts quoted (Vergara codex and others) in genuine old pre-Spanish documents I shall still incline to attribute this development to the Spanish period. For this reason I can not consider these documents of the great importance which Aubin and others attach to them. FRAGMENTS IX, X, XI, AND XII These four fragments are alike in character. Fragments IX (plate xiv) and X (plate xv) evidently were once a single strip, as w^ere also fragjnents XI (plate xvi) and XII (plate xvii). Fragments X (plate XV ) and XII (plate xvii) have a line across the top, cut with a sharp instrument; in XII (plate xvii) the cut follow^s a line drawn across the fragment, parts of which are to be seen at the bottom of fragment XI (plate xvi). The strips are all of the same w^idth, about 17 cm. Fragments X and XI (plates xv and xvi) together are 98 cm. in length, which is therefore the length of the wdiole strip originally. Fragments XI (plate xvi) and XII (plate xvii^ together are 146^ cm., the original length of the second strip. The first strip was once longer above. There are still faint traces of drawings there. The second strip seems to have been cut off sharply at the bottom; moreover, one corner has been cut out with the scissors. It would seem, then, that this strip was also longer. The drawings are done in ink w4th a coarse pen, and decidedly resemble the illustrations on fragment XV (j^late xx), and also somewhat those of ecclesiastical subjects on fragment XVI (plate xxi). The colors used are crimson and yellow, while for the stone wall on fragment XII (plate xvii) a blackish ink has been employed. The circles and squares in the low- est division of fragment IX (plate xiv) are painted crimson. So, too, are the tubs Avhicli the three rows of Indians in the upper divi- sion of fragment XI (plate xvi) carry on their backs, the transverse rows over and under them, and the hat, coat, and footgear of the 7238— No. 28— O : 14 210 BUKEAU OF AMEKICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 Spaniard; so also is the carpenter's ax on fragment X (plate xv). All else, if colored at all, is painted yellow. As for the general character of this manuscript, the figure of the Spaniard, on fragment XI (plate xvi), Avho is pulling two Indians along by a rope and the four Indians, on fragment X (plate xv) , who, with their hands bound behind their backs, hang upon a sort of gal- lows, show that this is a bill of complaint. The Indians enter com- plaint of oppression on the part of the Spaniards of ill treatment, work unjustly required, and of supplies unpaid for. This is there- fore a document similar to the Pintura del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico, which was discovered in the archives of the Duke of Osuna. But our manuscript unfortunately is not provided with text ; therefore a degree of uncertainty will always attach to the interpretations. Among the various illustrations, I will first draw attention to the one at the top of fragment XI (plate xvi). Here we see the head of an Indian and behind it his hieroglyph, a white roll, probably meant to represent paper (amatl) (see rt, figure 46, from the tribute list in the Mendoza codex, page 27, and described in the text as " papel de la tierra "). After this conies a house, with walls evidently sup- posed to be built of reeds, like the xacalli in the lower part of frag- ment II (plate vii). But the roof is different. It looks as though there had been an attempt to draw the prickl}^ point of an agave leaf on the house. These sharp points of the agave leaf were called uitztli, " thorn and uitztli, or uitzoctli, " pricking pulque was also the name given to newly fermented pulque, the intoxicating drink pre- pared from the juice of the agave." That there is here a reference to something of the kind appears from what follows the house in the drawing. We see there three jugs with basket-work covering, fur- nished with straw or rope handles. This illustration is valuable in itself, as it incidentally throws light upon the locality and the outward circumstances. We are forced to conclude that there is a reference here to occurrences on a pulque hacienda. Furthermore, we learn from the jugs on fragment XI (plate xvi) that the peculiar design to be seen on them and simi- lar objects represented on these fragments (an unpainted white border with a stripe running through it on one side) is meant for the mouth of a vessel. The artist may have had in mind a vessel with a sort of lip or spout which was formed by narrowing the mouth at one side. We find the same design on the two transverse rows of red, four- cornered objects corded with ropes, which are represented in the ujDper portion of fragment XI (plate xvi), as well as on the similar objects painted yellow to be seen in the two transverse rows at the « Sahagun, v. 4, chap. 5. I. ■ I > X HI I- < UJ cc 3 sioMiKl MEXICAN riCTlTKK WRITINGS FRAGMENTS IX-XIl 211 bottom of fragment X (plate xv) directly above the Indians hanging on the gallows; furthermore, I believe that these and the four- cornered objects made of yellow staves and corded round the middle, shown at the top of fragment X (plate xv), are all meant to repre- sent vessels, nameh^, wooden butts or casks for pulque or brandy. I think that I see further proof of this in two other facts: in the first place, because, as we shall see, the delivery of w^ood and of wooden utensils is noted elsewhere on our fragment; and, further, because we find a snake above the objects which I have explained to be butts or casks — the red ones at the top of fragment XI (plate xvi). The snake was often introduced into ancient pictures when pulque jugs w^ere to be represented. The ring or base on which the pulque jug stands is most frequently formed of the coils of a snake. The three rows of Indians on fragment XI (plate xvi) with sticks in their hands carrying on their backs tubs which are bound to a ladderlike frame (cacaxtli), would illustrate the transportation of pidque, which labor the Spaniards imposed upon the Indians. In the same connection I am inclined to believe that the two Indians on fragment XII (plate x\u) with great pots upon their backs are meant to represent the bringing or transportation of condensed agave juice (see Z>, figure IG), which is in the tribute list, Mendoza codex, ]:)ages 29 and 77, and explained in the text as miel de maguey espesa ''thickened maguey honey"). The two Indians at the bottom of fragment XI (plate xvi) with the small jugs on their backs might convey the same idea, or perhaps they are bringing real honey (see the similar l)ut smaller figure in the tribute list of the Mendoza codex, page 38, which is explained in the text as cantarillo de miel de abeja (" small jug of bee's honey "). The drawing at the bottom of fragment XII (plate xvii) is also perfectly intelligible. Here we see three slaughtered pigs. It is obvious from the shape of the hoofs that they are meant for pigs, and that they are supposed to be slaughtered is plainly indicated by the red color under the snout; but if these are pigs, then it is clear that the animal's head in the ten or eleven rows of baskets, which are bound to a ladder-shaped carrying frame (cacaxtli), on fragments XI (plate xvi) and XII (plate xvii), must likewise signify pork. If this should not be perfectly plain to anyone, I would refer him to the lowest row, on fragment XII (plate xvii), where the pig's foot is distinctly draAvn in addition to the pig's head. The great majority of other representations deal with the delivery of w^ood and w^ooden utensils. The long pieces wdth a hole at the end, in fragments X (plate xv) and XII (plate xvii) represent beams (see figure 46, which is explained in the tribute list, Mendoza codex, page 34, as vigas grandes — " large beams").. The smaller and more 212 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 slender pieces probably represent boards and laths (see d and e, which are explained in the tribute list, Mendoza codex, pages 25 and 28, as tablones de madera grandes and morillos de madera — " large wooden planks"). The large round circles and the broad four-cor- nered pieces may be meant for table tops or possibly blocks of wood. Moreover, on fragments IX (plate xiv) and X (plate xv) there are drawings of pieces of bent wood ; on fragment X (plate xv) two rows of seats; and on fragments X (plate xv) and XI (jDlate xvi), draw^- ings which seem to be bedsteads. The objects in the row at the bot- tom of fragment IX (plate xiv) are probably meant for lath frames or sleeping benches, for we find very similar figures drawn on page 34 of the Goupil-Boban atlas imder the name of tlapechtli, rendered tablado, andamio, cama de tablas (" framework, scaffolding, a broad bed"), Molina (see /, figure 40). Finally, carpentry is clearly de- noted by the figure of a carpenter (tlaxinqui) with an ax (tlaximal- tepoztli) in his hand (see //, Avhich designates carpenters, carpinteros, in the Pinturna del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico). And, lastly, the delivery of stone or masonry is represented on fragment IX (plate xiv) by a heap of stones, and near the lower end of fragment XII delate xvii) by a roAV of stones. If, then, we read the details correctly, complaints are made in our manuscript, first, at the bottom of fragment X (plate xv), of ill treat- ment; then, of compulsory labor, at the top of fragment XI (plate xvi) ; and, lastly, of unjust requisitions of or failure to pay for wood and various wood articles, pulque casks, stone, and pork. FRAGMENT XIII This is a strip of tolerably thin fine agave paper, 49 by 31 cm. in size (plate xviii). Only the lower half is written on, and of this only the lower portions are colored, the upper part being merely out- lined, that is, unfinished, a proof that here, too, the writer began in the old way, at the lower end of the strip, proceeding upward with his entries. The lower end is imperfect; but, judging by the space occu- pied by the Spanish document Avritten on the reverse side, there can not be much missing. At any rate, there was no other row beneath the lowest one. The document is of precisely the same character as one of the manuscripts which passed from the collection of the Hon Joel R. Poinsett, formerly United States minister to Mexico, into the pos- session of the American Philosophical Society, in Philadelphia, and which is published in the Transactions of the American Philo- sophical Society, new series, volume 12, part 2, article 4 (Phila- delphia, 1892), under the title Tribute Roll 4 (Calendar 1). There, as here, we see circles painted yellow alternating with red circles ff r SELERl MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS — FRAGMENT XIII 213 containing a verticillate drawing, a sort of swastika. Tliere are always six ^^ellow circles between the red ones, which is a clear proof that the yellow circles are meant for week days, the red ones for Sundays. Indeed, the Avhirling figuiv of tlie swastika is only a some- what different form of the sign {h and /, figure IG) which the Mexi- cans used for the word ilhuitl, which meant " day but in a special sense " feast day ", " festival In the manuscript of the American Philosophical Society we must begin with the lowest row on the right, follow this to the left, and the next from left to right, and so on, back and forth. Wherever a new month begins the series of week days is interrupted by the picture of the moon, which is alternately drawn facing to the right and the left (see k and Z, same figure), and is not to be included in counting the series of days. Proceeding from below upward, we have, in succession, first a month of 31 clays, then one of 30 days, again 31 days, 30 days, 31 da3^s, and, lastly, 31 days once more. This last month must, therefore, have been August or January, the first one March or August. On our fragment (plate xviii) the sign for the first day of the month is missing. The rows are probably to be followed back and forth, as described above, as we are led to conclude by certain facts which will be mentioned below. But the true circumstances can no longer be determined because several days have been cut away with scissors from the right-hand side of the page. Over each separate day on our fragment there is a woman's head, recognizable by the two erect hornlike braids over the forehead — the hair dress of Mexican women (see r, figure 37). This can hardly mean anything else than that on the da^^s in question women were commanded to do service. The heads are arranged over the days in pairs, facing each other, and between the two faces there is always a little flag, the hieroglyphic expression for the number 20. In the two upper rows the matter is simplified. Only one head is draw^n and this is connected by a straight line w^ith two consecu- tive da^^s, the number 20 standing beside the single head. At the left end of the lowest row an odd day was left over. The woman's head is placed over this, but only the half of 20, the numeral 10, is added, and this is correct. But, in addition, this odd day is con- nected with an odd day at the left end of the second row from the bottom, and then, pleonastically, as it were, the numeral 20 is placed between them. All this can hardly be explained except- ing on the assumption that the shifts of workers were changed every 70 days, that is, that different women came every two days. But i.ie fact that the writer passed from the left end of the lowest row to the left end of the next higher proves that he began at the right- hand lower corner, as in the case of the document of the American 214 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 Philosophical Society, and followed the rows back and forth, always connecting directly with the last end. But there seems to be a hiatus at the left end of the third row. The writer must have begun anew here, that is, at the right of the fourth row. In the manuscript of the American Philosophical Society a woman's head is likewise always joined with two days. Thus the shifts of workers must then also have been changed every two days. There are no numerals with the heads. The chief service in which women have been employed among all the tribes has always been cooking. With the Mexicans this was an especially important office, as the chief article of diet, the tortilla (tlaxcalli), could not be prepared in large quantities to be kept, like our bread, but was freshly prepared by a somewhat elaborate process for every meal, and eaten fresh and hot. The American Philosophical Society's manuscript clearly and distinctly shows that this is the feminine office alluded to in our manuscript, because in one instance beside the woman's head a mealing stone (metlatl) is depicted with the pulverized grain on it, followed by the baking slab {o, figure 46), and in another the head is followed by a dry measure, p, which in Mexican painting denoted a fanega of corn (see q, taken from a page in the Aubin-Goupil collection, Goupil-Boban atlas, plate 27). On the page referred to there are five such measures with the little flag above them (20), and the Spanish text below explains that this means 100 fanegas of corn (que se entiende cien hanegas de mahiz). But since not only the mealing stone, but also the corn measure, was drawn beside the women's heads, I think it can be safely deduced that the account represented in the American Philosophical Society's man- uscript noted not merelj' the service performed, but also the material delivered. In our fragment XIII (plate xviii) no such objects are drawn beside the women's heads. But the writing on the reverse side of the page proves that the reference is to similar services. The manuscripts in A. von Humboldt's collection are, as I have already stated, with the exception of the first, pasted upon large sheets of paper of the size of the atlas of which this is the descriptive text. In examining frag- ment XIII (plate xviii), which is rather thin paper, it first occurred to me that there must be writing on the reverse side. I began cau- tiously to detach it, and by calling in expert assistance I succeeded in removing the sheet uninjured from its backing. On the reverse side I found the following document : Digo yo diego hermano del mayordomo deste pueblo de misquia- guala q. resebi del sefior manuel de olvera coregidor deste dicho pueblo 101 peso y medio de las yndias quelles q. an hecho tortillas en su casa y me a pagado todas las demas q. han servido hasta oy. fecho r rler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT XIII 215 a veynte y nueve de mayo de mill y qiiiniento y scsenta y nueve afios tg mechior de contreras y galp q. firmo per el otrgante ante mi s melchior de p. de palen contreras I, Diego, brother of the bailiff of this village Mizquiyauallan, .icl nowledge that I have received from Mr Manuel de Olvera, mag- istrate of this said village, 101^ pesos for the women who made tor- tillas at his house, and (that) he has paid me for all the other (women) who have performed services up to the present date. Done on May 29, 1569. Witness, Melchior de Contreras y Galp m evidence of which I sign for him who executes this document. " Melchior de Contreras. " Before me, P. de Palen, .") Fig. 47. OHBcial signatui-es. It is therefore clear that this fragment XIII was likewise an account, one indeed of services rendered by women, who were ordered to bake tortillas and to do other work. The account comes from the same village of Mizquiyauallan, to which the account on fragment VII (plate XII ) of our collection belongs, and the reverse contains the receipt for wages paid for these services. The days which were cut out of the right side of the sheet seem to represent a deduction, a reduction of the account or a correction to which the person present- ing it w^as obliged to submit. This document is tw^o years older than that on fragment YII (plate xii). As for the persons concerned, the receiver of the money is the brother of the major-domo of Mizquiyauallan, and is mentioned here, as is common among Indians, merely by his Christian name, Diego. The major-domo's name is not given, but it is probable that he is 216 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 the person who signed the receipt on fragment VII (plate xii). There the major-domo himself signed the receipt (a, figure 47). Here his brother does not know how to write. A Spaniard, Melchior de Contreras j Galp (c) signs for him. The bill is paid by the same Manuel de Olvera mentioned on fragment VII (plate xii). Here, two years earlier, he was corregidor; that is, village magis- trate. I can not quite decipher the signature of the official before whom the business was transacted, d. Finall}^, it is to be noticed that there are moreover three men's heads on our fragment, each viith a hieroglyph behind or over it, which undoubtedly gives the name of the man. The heads with hieroglyphs in the top row both stand at the beginning of a section marked by a line of partition. The same seems to be the case in the second row from the top; for the progression here, as shown by the position of the Avomen's heads, is from left to right, although the beginning of the division here (at the left end) is not especially denoted by a line. In exactly the same way a man's head with a hieroglyph is placed at the beginning of a section, designated by a line, in the document of the American Philosophical Society. These men's heads most probably represent the gobernadores de Indios or the village magistrates who furnished the Avomen to bake tortillas. The man on the left end of the second row from the top has the head of a bird of prey behind him as a hieroglyph. His name may have been quauhti, " eagle ", cuixtli, " haAvk or something of the kind. The man on the right end of the top roAv must have had a similar name. The man at the left end of the top row has a hieroglyph Avhich seems to consist of tAvo pointed leaf ends, Avith thorns on the upper surface. This may be the hieroglyph for Uitznauatl, for in the list of names of persons of Uexotzinco, AA'here Uitznauatl is a quite common name, it is invariably expressed by the points of tAvo agave leaA^es draAvn side by side. It is very remarkable that in the document of the American Philosophical Society one of the two men's heads represented there, the one at the left end of the third roAV from the top, is marked by the same hieroglyph (see figure 46). The one at the right end of the fifth roAv was probably named Quiyauh, for his hieroglyph consists of three drops of rain hanging down (or falling) (see n, same figure). Fragment XIII (plate xa^iii) of our collection and the Tribute Koll 4 (Calendar 1) of the American Philosophical Society are doubtless distinct and independent documents, but so closely akin in idea, in draAving, and in various details, that Ave can safely attribute them to the same locality and period. Our fragment XIII (plate xviii), having its explanation on the reverse side, is, therefore, a BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY MEXICAN PAINTING-HU5 BULLETIN 28 PLATE XVIII OLDT FRAGMENT XIII SELEB] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT XIV 217 valuable document by Avhicli to judge the manuscript in the posses- sion of the American Philosophical Society. I have already mentioned that fragment VII (plate xii) of our collection, which, like fragment XIII (plate xviii), now under dis- cussion, came from the village of Mizquiyauallan, seems to have belonged to the Boturini collection. I quoted the passage in Botu- rini's Museo Indiano (Catalogo, number 1, section 21) wliich de- scribes these manuscripts from Mizquiyauallan: Tres mapas en papel Indiano como faxas. Tratan de los tributos que pagaba el pueblo de Mizquiahuallan, y en el se ven las cifras numericas de cada cosa, que entregaban los vecinos Three maps on Indian paper like bands. They treat of the tribute paid by the village of Mizquiyauallan, and contain the numerical statement of each article furnished by the householders "). Now, if the one page of the Poinsett collection, at present belong- ing to the American Philosophical Society, is so closely related to fragment VII (plate xi) of our collection, and the other to our frag- ment XIII (plate xviii) that we feel tempted to attribute them to the same place and date, then the question arises whether the two Amer- ican manuscripts are not also mentioned in Boturini. This seems, indeed, to be the case; for, directly after the passage quoted above, two other and longer manuscripts from the same village are men- tioned in section 21 of the Museo Indiano, under numbers 2 and 4 : 2. Otro [mapa] de la misma materia y mas largo, de dicho pueblo [Mizquiahuallan] ("Another [map] of the same material and larger from the same village [Mizquiyauallan]"). 4. Otro del mismo papel y mas largo del mismo pueblo ("Another on the same paper and larger from the same village"). FRAGMENT XIV This (plate xix) is a piece of tolerably thick, firm agave paper, 34 by 15 cm. Near the upper end two strips have been pasted one over the other. The frayed end of the strip underneath is plainly visible. Below the top row are the words estan^ia de tlatonpan. The fragment may be divided into two essentially different parts, an upper and a lower one. In the upper part everything is painted crimson and in the lower yellow predominates. The base of the upper part is formed b}^ a strip inclosed Avithin two transverse lines, in which are three men's heads, each having a remarkable character behind it which looks like a key. Two of them are, moreover, pro- vided with special hieroglyphs. I take the character which looks like a key actually to be one, and consider it as an expression of the word tlatlati, which means " he who hides something, or shuts up or guards something " (el que guarda alguna cosa, o el que esconde algo, 218 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 Molina), for in the Xaltepetla2:>an list of names of persons (Manii- scrit Mexicain number 3, Bibliotheque Nationale) I find mention of a man named Juan Tlatlatin, who is described by the hieroglyph figure 48; that is, by a hand holding up a key. The first person from the right seems to be hieroglyphically designated by two horns on his head. His name may therefore have been Quaquauh (see h and c, same figure), which in the list of names of persons (Manuscrit Mexicain number 3, Bibliotheque Nationale) denote persons of that name. The second person seems to be hieroglyphically designated by a stone (te-tl) and water (a-tl). The third person has no hiero- glyph, and I can not interpret the circular design in front of him. li i k m n Fu;. 4S. Symliols for certain persons and for numbers. Both divisions of the page treat of the same matter, the delivery of articles for which payment is asked or nonpayment is complained of; that is, it is an account or a bill of complaint. If we take for granted that Ave are to j^roceed from below upward, as in the other fragments, then the first representation below would be ten turkey hens, followed by five cocks. Beside the cock at the left end of the row, "however, there is a small flag, the sign for 20. This, therefore, must mean 24 cocks. In the next row above, first on the right, there is a vessel and above that a figure, which I can not explain, surrounded by featherlike rays, very much like those (see the upper half of this fragment) which are drawn to denote the num- MEXICAN PAINTING-HUMBOLDT FRAGMENT XIV SELERl MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENT XIV 219 ber 400 (tzontli). Then follow small oblong objects, each with a small flag ('20), and in the row above there are ten vessels, each of which probably stands for a fanega of corn (see and q, figure 46). We have in the right lower section of the red upper portion of our fragment first, immediately over the men's heads, tAvo turkeys' heads, similar to the lower division. Then follow two figures which are probably meant for chili, " red-pepper pods ", each provided with the bush, which denotes the number centzontli, or 400. Turkey and red- pepper sauce belong together. Molle con guajolote is still the holi- day dish throughout the country. Then follow three round objects, each intersected by a cross and with the number 400 attached; then, two peculiar figures, which we have not hitherto encountered, and of which I shall speak directly. Over them are five small circles, each with the number 400, and in the row above eight vessels (fanegas of corn) and round objects like those in the lower row, each with a little flag indicating 20. The question now arises, what are the little oval objects, fifteen of which in the lower compartment are marked with a little flag, a total of 3,000, and five in the upper portion with the little flag, a total of 1,000? Since these articles are counted and the amounts reach so high a figure, I think they must be meant for cacao beans (see d to figure 48). This mode of counting also occurs 'in other manu- scripts (see taken from the tribute list in the Mendoza codex, page 19, described in the text as " 1,000 almendras de cacao "; and /, taken from the Pintura del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico, where the little flag or 20 is omitted from the single beans on the right). The text says, chiquacen tzontli ypan chicompohualli, which means six times four hundred, and seven times twenty (cacao beans). But this very omission of the little flag in this painting proves that the unit in counting chocolate nuts was the number 20, which is always applied on our page to these doubtful objects. It is well known that chocolate nuts were used in ancient Mexico for small change and were therefore counted. The decussated and plain circles in the upper division, all pro- vided with the bush (for 400), are probably only simple numerals, and refer either to Avhat went before (the red-pepper pods) or to what follows above (the chocolate nuts). As for the two peculiar figures at the left end of the lower row in the upper division, they are an expression for a load, derived from the scale pan of a balance. This is obvious from a manuscript in the Aubin-Goupil collection, formerly owned by Don Antonio Leon y Gama, that is interesting on account of the peculiarities of its system of notation, which will be noticed here and were first noted by 220 BUREAU or AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 2S Gama in his appendix relating to Mexican arithmetic.'^ A page of this manuscript is reproduced on ])late 30 of the Goupil-Boban atlas. Here we see, for instance, forty-three, fifty-three, and thirty- eight loads of cornstalks (zacate) expressed by A, f', and k. I have chosen these examples because they illustrate the peculiarities of nota- tion, which occur in this manuscript. On this page the number 10 is expressed by halving the little flag, which denotes 20, and coloring only one of the halves, the number 15, by cutting away a fourth part of the little flag and coloring the other three-fourths. It is signifi- cant for our fragment that in all the three figures h to k we have not only the bundle of zacate, but also a scale pan hanging from it, which is the symbol of a load. That the scale pan does indeed typify the weight, a load, on this page is made still further evident by the fact that on the same page the same symbol of the scale pan is used to denote the coin 1 2^eso, as we saw it in c, figure 44 (see I to 7i, figure 48, where the reals and medios are attached to the pesos in the same way as Ave saw them in c to /, figure 44, which I have already dis- cussed more particularly). The two figures at the left end of the lower row in the upper (red) division, therefore, must signify a load. This again mav refer to what went before (the red-pepper pods) or to Avhat follows (the cacao beans) ; for these were also reckoned by loads (see e to r/, figure 48, the former from the Mendoza codex, the latter from the Pintura del Gobernador, Alcaldes y Regidores de Mexico) . This being settled, the top rows of the two divisions also become clear. In the top row of the lower division we have on the right first, three loads of zacate. Here no scale pan is drawn hanging from the bundle, as in h to but the whole bundle, instead of the scale pan, hangs by the three cords. Then follows a mat, and, lastly, two square objects Avhich may represent boards or perhaps some woven fabric. In the top row of the upper division we have first, on the right, tw^o bundles of zacate; then, tAvo loads of wood. Here the load is drawn in the same Avay as in the lower division; that is, the bundle of wood in place of the scale pan hangs from the three cords. Plate 30 of the Goupil-Boban atlas, which gave us the key to the meaning of the figures selected to denote loads on fragment XIV (plate xix) of our collection, belongs to a manuscript Avhich is fur- nished with text and is a bill of complaint issued against Captain Jorge Ceron y Carabajal, alcalde mayor of the town of Chalco, brought before the Real Audiencia of Mexico in the year 1564. It is not improbable that our fragment came from the same locality, and perhaps it belongs to the same period. " Gama, Dos Piedras, edid. Bustamente. Mexico, 1832, p. 137. BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY ( MEXICAN PAINTING-H BOLDT FRAGMENT XV SELEK] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENTS XV, XVI 221 FRAGMENT XV This (plate xx) is a strip of agave paper 34 cm. long and 52 cm. Avide, which resembles tlie fragments X to XII (phites xv, xvi, and XVII ). The drawing of the figures also exhibits an unmistakable resemblance to those fragments. This fragment also belongs among those of our collection which can with tolerable certainty be identified with some of those described by Boturini. It is mentioned in the Catalogo del Museo Indiano in section 21, under number 10: Otro [mapa] del mismo [papel Indiano], y pinta gran Numero de pavos, que se pagavan de Tributo. No se sabe de que pueblo (" another [map] on the same paper [Indian paper], which depicts a great number of turkeys, which were paid as tribute, it is not known from what town Besides the personages on the right, there are only turkey cocks (designated by the heads) represented in the six divisions, which are formed on the fragment by transverse lines. The first fifteen vertical rows are painted red, the last two blue. In every transverse division we have in the first vertical row (on the right) 5 turkey heads, and in all the following vertical rows only 1. The whole number of red tur- key heads occurring in one division is, therefore, 61. The rows of blue turkeys are probably incomplete. Of the persons on the right side of the fragment the lowest one has no hieroglyph. The next one is designated by a bird's head with a long curved beak. The next two are destroyed. The one before the last has for a hieroglyph the picture of a fish close beside his head: his name, therefore, was probably Michin. The topmost one has a circle below his head, which may have reference to his name. FRAGMENT XVI We have next a strip of thick, firm paper 35 cm. long, 45 cm. wide, which looks like European paper made of rags. Microscopic investigation, however, reveals a fiber which in appearance, thickness of cell wall, size of lumen, etc., is apparently precisely like the fibers of the coarse agave paper used for fragments III (plate viii) and IV (plate ix). But, together with these, single fibers occur which are very delicate and spirally coiled, and which seem to stretch and unroll slightly in the water of the object glass. This fragment, as the creases prove, was folded in four parts, and is much damaged, especially on the right side. The drawings are done in black ink, without other coloring. The pictures begin above at the left, and continue in this row from left to right, but in the second row^ from right to left, and so on, the direction alternating. The representations are of a religious nature. In order to under- stand them it is necessary to consult the Roman Catechism, especially 222 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 those versions of it which were used in earlier times, as well as down to the present day, by the priests Avho were sent to the Indian villages to instruct the natives and take charge of their spiritual welfare. I found an exact agreement between the representations on our frag- ment and the text of a Catecismo en Idioma Mixteco, printed in 1839 at Puebla. The numerals given on the fragment at once made it plain to me that the fourteen articles of faith of the Roman cate- chism, and, lower doAvn, the ten commandments are here represented. I will tal^e the catechism printed in 1839 as my starting point, and will give in each successive section, first, the paragraph from the catechism and then the description of the picture which explains it. The first row begins at the left: Section 1. Los articulos de la Fe son catorce ("There are fourteen articles of faith"). The picture shows us first a page covered with writing and a hand which points to it. This means article. Then comes a cross on a base formed by a series of steps; this means faith. Then comes the numeral 14, ar- ranged in the usual way in groups of five. Section 2. Los siete per- tenecen a la divinidad (" Seven appertain to the deity "). The pic- ture gives us first the numeral 7 and then a bearded (Spanish) face, and ov^er it a drawing, apparently meant to represent a halo, consist- ing of a metal disk, in the center of which and at regular distances in the periphery there are perforations. This is the hieroglyph regu- larly used thi-oughout to denote God. Section 3. Y los otros siete [pertenecen] a la santa humanidad de nuestro Senor Jesucristo (" And the other seven [appertain] to the holy humanity of our Lord Jesus Christ"). The picture gives first the numeral 7. Then, on a base, cross, spear, and the sponge soaked in vinegar and fastened to a reed, which means the crucified, the God-man. Sectidn 4. Los [siete articulos] que pertenecen a la divinidad son estos (" Those [seven articles] which appertain to the deity are these "). The picture gives first the numeral 7, then the hieroglyph for " article " (see section 1), then the picture of God (see section 2), only there is a flowing gar- ment indicated here below the head. Section 5. El primero [arti- culo] creer en un solo Dios Todospoderoso ("The first [article], to believe in one Omnipotent God "). The picture gives the numeral 1, the hieroglyph " article ", and the picture of God. With the hiero- glyph " article " is combined a figure Avhich is difficult to interpret. Possibly it is meant to represent the One over all things, the Almighty. Section 6. El segundo [articulo] , creer que es Dios Padre ("The second [article], to believe that He is God, the Father"). The picture is partly destroyed. The numeral 2 must have stood at the top. Then follows the hieroglyph " article ", and the picture of God as He was represented in section 4, but here He has two arms. The left hand holds the imperial globe. In the right He probably SKLEHl MEXICAN PICTURP: WRITINGS FRAGMENTS XV, XVI 223 held a scepter. S.ectioii 7. EJ tercero [articulo], creer que es Dios Hijo ("The third [article], to believe that He is Ood, the Son"). Part of the numeral 3 is still visible with the hieroglyph article below, and, close by, a figure with a garment like the one in section 4 and an outstretched arm. The head and essential parts, however, are destroyed. The second roAV begins at the right: Section 1. El cuarto [arti- culo], creer que es Dios Espiritu Santo ("The fourth [article], to believe that He is God, the Holy Ghost"). On the right a part of the numeral 4 is still discernible. Then follows tlie hieroglyph " article ", and then the dove descending from heaven, which is the Holy Ghost. Section 2. El quinto [articulo], creer que es Criador ("The fifth [article], to believe that He is the Creator"). At the right of the division is the numeral 5, and in front of it the hiero- glyph " article ". On the left is God with the imperial globe in His hand. Above, are depicted the starry heavens; below, a house built of bones, that is, the lower regions. Section 3. El sesto [articulo], creer que es Salvador (" The sixth [article], to believe that He is the Saviour "). On the right is the numeral 6; then God with the cross in one hand and in the other the spear (which made the Avound in His side). Section 4. El septimo [articulo], creer que es Glorificador ("The seventh [article], to believe that He is the Glorifier"). On the right is, first, the hieroglyph "article"; then the numeral. On the left is the head of a priest — not of God, for the bearded face is represented with plain hair, without the massive halo. In the middle of the division are two thick, black figures, like iron bolts, symbols employed below to express the idea of commandment. This is clearly intended to represent the priest filled Avith the Holy Ghost, Avho regulates the life of the parish. Section 5. Los [articulos] que per- tenecen a la Santa Humanidad de nuestro Sehor Jesucristo son los [siete] siguientes (" Those [articles] Avhicli appertain to the holy humanity of our Lord Jesus Christ, are the [seven] folloAving ") . The picture shoAvs us first at the right a figure which reminds us of the tufts of eagle's doAvn in the old manuscripts. I can not Avholly explain it. It apparentl}^ serA'es here as a mark of separation. Then folloAvs the numeral 7; then the cross and instruments of. the passion, just as in section 3 of the first roAv. Section 6. El primero [articulo], creer que nuestro Sehor Jesucristo en cuanto hombre fue concebido por obra del Espiritu Santo (" The first [article], to believe that our Lord Jesus Christ in so far as He was man, was conceived of the Holy Ghost"). The picture shows us to the right 1 (a circle); beloAv it the hieroglyph " article " ; then the Holy Ghost as a dove and, in a manner proceeding from it, the face of God, as heretofore. From this section on there is some confusion in the numeration. A neAV section ought to follow noAV Avith the numeral 2, and Avith Avhat 224 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 is pictorial ly represented in the rest of section 6, for there now fol- lows in the catechism: El segundo [articulo], creer que nacio de Santa Maria Virgen siendo ella virgen antes del parto, y despues del parto ("The second [article], to believe that He was born of the Holy Virgin Mary, she being a virgin before and after His birth "). The picture shows us the Virgin Mary with a halo, and issuing from her body is God, as previously represented, but with the spear, the instrument of the passion, in his hand. But the numeral 2, which should be here, is in section 1 of the third row following. The third row begins at the left: Section 1. El tercero [articulo], creer que recebio niuerte y pasion por salvar a nosotros pecadores (" The third [article], to believe that He suffered and died to save us sinners"). The picture shows us first, on the left, the numeral 2, which really belongs in the second half of the preceding section ; then God crucified, and then in the grave, marked by a cross, the corpse, recognizable by the closed eyes. Section 2. El cuarto [articulo], creer que descendio a los infiernos y saco las animas de los Santos Padres, que estaban esperando su santo advenimiento (" The fourth [article], to believe that He descended into hell and brought out the souls of the holy fathers, who were abiding there in hope of His blessed coming"). First, on the left, is the numeral 3, which really belongs to the preceding section, and under it the hieroglyph " arti- cle ". Then follows God with the cross in His right hand and before Him a short path, the two footprints of which lead into the wide- open jaws of a fiery monster, which represent the interior of the earth, or hell, quite after the manner of ancient Mexican symbolism. Within are to be seen the souls, represented by a heart, otherwise the dead, represented by heads with closed eyes. Section 3. El quinto [articulo], creer que resuscito al tercer dia de entre los muertos (" The fifth [article], to believe that He rose again from the dead on the third day"). On the left is, first, the numeral 4, which really belongs in the previous section. Then comes the hieroglyph " arti- cle ". On the right are the dead with fleshless ribs and closed eyes, and before them is God with the spear, the instrument of the passion, in His hand. In the center, a figure bent at right angles and twice doubled, Avhich is probably meant to express the act of arising. Sec- tion 4. El sesto [articulo], creer que subio a los cielos, y esta sentado a la diestra de Dios Padre Todopoderoso ("The sixth [article], to believe that He ascended into heaven, where He sitteth at the right hand of God, the Omnipotent P^ather "). The picture presents first, on the left, the numeral 5, which really belongs in the previous section. Then follows the face of God, and joined to this is a ladder leading up to the starry heavens. A hand from heaven points to a circle filled with network, which is apparently meant, like the similar figure in the fifth section (from the left) in the first row, to express the SKLER] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENTS XV, XVI 225 Omnipotent God. Section 5. El septimo [articuloj, creer que vendra a juzgar a los vivos y a los miiertos, etc. (" The seventh [article], to believe that He shall come to judge the quick and the dead"). On the left is, first, the numeral G, which really belongs in the previ- ous section. Then follows God with the sw^ord, the symbol of justice, in His hand. Then followed, evidently, the dead in one square, and the living in another ; but the edge is destroyed and very little more of the picture is now to be seen. The last words of explanation follow in the next row. The fourth row begins at the right. Section 1. Conviene a saber, a los buenos, para darles gloria, porque guardaron sus Santos Manda- mientos (" The good should know, to give them glory, because they kept His holy commandments "). First, on the right, is the numeral 7 and the hieroglyph " article which realty belong in the previous section. Then comes a house containing a man, behind whom is a sign like an ear of maize, which is used as below in the third com- mandment (row 5, section 6) , as an expression for " receiving honor ". The whole probably signifies a good man. Then follows a picture which I can not exactly explain, and this is followed by the bearded face of a priest who seems to proffer the same sign for " honoring Sections 2 to^ 4. Y a los malos pena eterna, porque no los guardaron. Amen ("And to the wicked eternal punishment, because they kept them not. Amen"). Here I am not quite sure whether the first of these sections does not belong to the foregoing. On the right we see first a hand with a circle, which in section 5 seemed to indicate the beginning of a new chapter. Indeed, the whole fragment begins above, with a hand. Then follows the hieroglyph " article ". Then comes a circle with a cross and a semicircular figure over it, which I can not explain. In the next section flames seem to be indicated, and farther on are the heads of the damned. In the next section we have a man prostrate on the ground, probably one of the damned, or the devil looking on. Then follow the black iron bolt and the inverted heart, which signifies souls in hell, as we have already seen in the representation of the jaws of the earth in the second section of the third row. With section 5 begins the new chapter, the ten command- ments. The catechism begins with the words: Los mandamientos de la ley de Dios son diez (" The commandments of God's laAv are ten "). The picture shows us, first, on the right, a hand and a circle, which denotes the beginning of a chapter. Then follows the iron bolt, which possibly expresses the idea " commandment ". Then the numeral 10. The fifth row begins at the left: Section 1. Los tres primeros pertenecen al honor de Dios (" The first three appertain to the honor of God"). The picture shows the numeral 3 and the head of God 7238— No. 28—05 15 226 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 (with the massive, perforated halo). Section 2 (not separated from the preceding one by a line). Y los otros siete al provecho del progimo ("And the other seven to the advantage of the neighbor "). The picture shows the numeral 7 and a human head, combined with three black balls or circles. I can not explain the latter. Can they mean coins to express provecho? Section 3. El primero, amaras a Dios sobre todas las cosas (" The first, thou shalt love God above all things"). The picture shows the numeral 1; then follows God, holding a heart in His hand. Section 4. El segundo, no juraras el nombre de Dios en vano (" The second, thou shalt not take the name of God in vain "). The picture shows the numeral 2, with the picture of God, and on the right of the neck a hand pointing to two black marks. The symbolism is not clear to me. Section 5. El tercero, santificaras las fiestas (" The third, thou shalt keep holy the feasts "). The picture shows the numeral 3 ; then what seems to be an arrow well wrapped, which is probably meant to express " to keep, or hallow then a house with the priest inside the church. Section 6. El cuarto, honraras a tu padre y madre (" The fourth, thou shalt honor thy father and mother "). The picture shows the numeral 4, followed by a man, the father, holding in his hand the s3aTibol resembling an ear of maize, which we met with above as a symbol for " honor shown In the middle stands the child, and on the right the mother, recogniza- ble by the manner of wearing the hair with the knot low on the neck, the two hornlike braids standing up over the forehead, and the fem- inine garment (uipilli) something like a shirt, with the piece of insertion ornamented with tassels below the opening for the neck. Section 7. El quinto, no mataras ("The fifth, thou shalt not mur- der ") . The picture shows on the left the numeral 5, then a man with a sword in his hand, and facing him a bearded man who stretches out his hand as if to ward off injury. The sixth row begins at the right : Section 1. El sesto, no fornicaras (" The sixth, thou shalt not commit adultery "). To the right is the numeral 6, of which only a few faint traces remain ; then follows the picture of a woman like the mother in the fourth commandment (row 5, section 6). Section 2. El septimo, no hurtaras (" The seventh, thou shalt not steal "). The picture represents the numeral 7 and a man fingering the lock of a door or a chest. Section 3. El octavo, no leventaras falso testimonio, ni mentiras (" The eighth, thou shalt not bear false witness or lie "). Here we have the numeral 8 and a man delivering a letter covered with black marks. Section 4. El noveno, no desearas la muger de tu progimo (" The ninth, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife"). The picture shows the numeral 9 and a man stretching out his hand toward a woman opposite to him. Section 5. El decimo, no codiciaras bienes agenos (" The tenth, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's goods"). This picture shows the BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 28 PLATE XXI BOLDT FRAGMENT XVI SELRR] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS FRAGMENTS XV, XVI 227 numeral 10 and a man stretching out his hand to the objects opposite to him, the lock of a door or chest and a woman. Section 6. Estos diez mandamientos se encierran en dos (" These ten commandments may be comprised in two "). The picture shows the numeral 10, and joined to it by a line the numeral 2; then follows the hieroglyph " article The seventh and last row begins at the left : Section 1. En servir y amar a Dios sobre todas las cosas (" To serve and love God above all other things "). On the left may have been the picture of God. The picture of the heart is still visible here, as in the first commandment (row 5, section 3), expressing the idea of love. Section 2. Y a tu progimo como a ti mismo ("And thy neighbor as thyself"). The picture shows the numeral 2 and then two men, to express neighborly love. We have been able to prove, or to make it seem probable, that most of the manuscripts in our collection once belonged to the great collec- tion of the Cavaliere Boturini, w^hich he was forced to leave behind him in Mexico when he was released from prison. Does this also hold good in regard to this manuscript of religious import, the last in our collection ? Boturini enumerates in section 25 of the catalogue of his Museo Indiano the following manuscripts of religious character : 1. A manuscript of 11 pages on European paper, whose authorship he ascribes to Padre Sahagun. This now belongs to the Aubin-Goupil collection. Two pages of it are published on plate 78 of the Goupil- Boban atlas. 2. A manuscript on agave paper, which he describes as follows: Otro pedazo de mapa con figuras y cifras en papel Indiano. Demues- tra parte de dichos misterios; i. e.. de nuestra Santa Fe ("Another fragment of a map, with illustrations and numbers, on Indian paper, shows part of the said mysteries, that is, of our holy faith "). 3. A manuscript of 4 pages on European paper with interlinear explanations in Otomi, ademas de las figuras y cifras, unos pocos venglones en lengua Otomi (" besides figures and pictures, a few lines in the Otomi language This manuscript now exists in the Aubin- Goupil collection. Two pages are reproduced in plate 76 of the Goupil-Boban atlas. 4. Un librito en papel Europeo de 48 fojas chiquitas. Explica con toscas figuras, y cifras la dicha Doctrina (" a small book on Euro- pean paper, of 48 tiny pages. Explains the said doctrine in rude pictures and figures"). This manuscript is also in the Aubin- Goupil collection. Two pages are reproduced in plate 77 of the Goupil-Boban atlas. The figures are there provided with explana- tions in Nahuatl. Of the four manuscripts of a religious character owned by Botu- rini, the fourth, which Boturini mentions under number 2, has not 228 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 thus far been found, but the description of this manuscript agrees perfectly with our manuscript, fragment XVI (plate xxi). For our manuscript is also written on agave paper, and in the representations the numerals alongside the pictures are very conspicuous. I therefore deem it not only possible, but highly probable, that our fragment XVI is the manuscript described by Boturini, number 2, section 25. Our manuscript, inferior as it is to the paintings of the old pagan time, is nevertheless superior to the manuscripts of a religious char- acter in the Aubin-Goupil collection b}^ reason of a certain vigorous style. I am under the impression that the Aubin-Goupil picture catechisms were executed by European priests, but that the old aboriginal Indian training is evident in the drawing of our fragment XVI (plate xxi). CONCLUSION The 16 (properly 14) picture manuscripts in the Alexander von Humboldt collection, however limited the contents of the separate fragments (excepting the first one) present a good synopsis of the various styles and of the various purposes for which it became necessary to employ hieroglyphs in old pagan and early Christian times. They are not only of archeologic interest and of interest in the history of civilization, but some of them, as we have seen, are also of positive historic value; for, as I have shown, it seems possible to establish a firm chronologic basis only by acting on the indications offered by fragment I of our collection. Some fragments, namely, I, III, and IV (plate ii to vi, viii, and ix), belong to the old pagan period. Others certainly originated in early Christian times: VI (plate XI ) is to be attributed to a period prior to A. D. 1545; II (plate vii), before A. D. 1565; XIII (plate xviii) bears the date 1569; VII (plate xii), the date 1571, and the other fragments also can not be much later than these. As for the place where they origi- nated, I can unfortunately say nothing positiA^e in regard to I (plates II to vi) ; III (plate viii) and IV (plate ix) came from Huamantla, in the state of Tlaxcallan; II (plate vii) came from the immediate neighborhood of the Mexican capital; while VI (plate xi) and VIII (plate xiv) are from the kingdom of Tezcuco; VII, XII, XIII, and XVIII, from Mizquiyauallan, in the land of the Otomi; and XIV (plate XIX ) possibly from the kingdom of the Chalcas. Several of the manuscripts seem to express plainly the differences which existed among the Mexican-speaking races in spite of all their similarity in civilization, mode of living, and ways of thinking, and they are otherwise very instructive, as we have seen. Our great countryman, whose field of labor lay in quite another domain, rescued these fragments from among a number of documents, which at the time were the prey of chance in Mexico. Since then sbler] MEXICAN PICTURE WRITINGS 229 they have lain among other manuscript treasures in the Royal Library, little noticed, or, more correctly speaking, seldom used. Tt is partly owing to facts that have only very recently become known that I have been able to make these fragments divulge some portion of their contents. Last year we celebrated the four hundredth anniversary of the day on which Columbus, the discoverer of America, first set foot in the New World, and within a few years we can celebrate the one hundredth anniversary of the day on which the scientific discoverer of the New World, Alexander von Humboldt, began his travels on that continent. May this volume, which is the first attempt at treat- ing of the only one of his collections hitherto untreated, be not wholly unworthy of the great name which it bears on the title page. THE BAT GOD OF THE MAYA RACE BY EDUARD SELER 231 THE BAT GOD OF THE MAYA KACE" By Eduard Seler The beautiful drawing sent by Mr Dieseldorff to the Anthropolog- ical Society shows us a deity whose worship is indeed occasionally mentioned by historians and whose name is contained in the names of various Maya races, but of whom, on the whole, as of the mythologic forms of South American and Central American races generally, little enough is known. This deity is the bat god. The bat in various Maya dialects is called Zotz. From this is derived the name Zotzil and Ah-zotzil, the " bat people ", which name, on the one hand, belongs to a tribe who from ancient times to the present day have been settled in the vicinity of what is now San Cristobal de Chiapas — Mexicanized as Tzinacanteca, the people of Tzinacantlan, the " bat city " — and, on the other hand, it belongs to a tribe which is probably to be regarded as a portion of the great nation of the Cakchikels, the chief nation of southern Guatemala. Finally, there is still a Tzinacantan in the extreme southeast of Guatemala, within the region of the Sinca language. Unfortunately, we are insufficiently informed concerning the lan- guage and traditions of the Zotzil of Chiapas, but we have some information in regard to the tribes of southern and western Guate- mala. Here in early Christian times the natives themselves wrote down their traditions, and these traditions, the Popol Vuh ^ and the annals of Xahila ' are precious documents. The only drawback is the difficulty of using them, because, on the one hand, we lack ade- quate lexicographic aids, but more especially because we have no exact definitions of the mythologic animals and the rest of the objects and expressions which have reference to the ancient folklore of these races. " E. Seler in Verhancilungen der Berliner Gesellschaft fiir Anthropologie, Ethnologie und Urgeschichte, p. 577 and following, published in Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, 1894, pt. 6. ^ Popol Vuh. Le livre sacre et les mythes de I'antiquite americaine, etc., par I'abb^ Brasseur de Bourbourg. Paris, 1861. The Annals of the Cakchikels. Brinton's Library of Aboriginal American Litera- ture, n. 6. Philadelphia, 1885. 233 234 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 An interesting passage in the Popol Vuh identifies the Kiches with the Toltecs, who are designated in the Popol Vuh as Yaqui,<^ and identifies Tohil, the god of the Kiche race, with Yolcuat-Quitzal- cuat — that is, Youalli ehecatl,^ Quetzalcoatl— the god of the Toltecs. While the three tribes of the Kiches had the same god, and the god of the Rabinals, though he was called differently, namely, Hun- toh, was also the same, the Cakchikels differed from the Kiches both in their language and in the name of the god, whom they had brought with them from Tollan. The Cakchikel god was called Zotziha Chimalcan. After the name of this god, both the China- mits, that is, the two royal families of the Cakchikels, were called Ah-po-zotzil and Ah-po-xa (hil).^ We find the same name for this god once more in a second passage, and here, too, there is a more detailed statement concerning him. We read : " There was a tribe who drew fire from fire sticks. The Cakchikel god is called Zotzi- laha Chamalcan and the bat (zotz) is his image.'^ He was therefore the god who controlled fire and who was conceived of in the like- ness of a bat. I can not at present explain the name Chimalcan, or Chamalcan. Zotziha, or Zotzilaha, does not mean " bat ", but " bat's house I think this should suggest a mountain cavern, the interior of the earth ; therefore a god of caverns, of the dark realms of earth. This is confirmed by a passage immediately preceding the one just quoted, where the figure appearing before the tribes in the dress of a bat is styled " this Xibalba ". As a double name, Zotzi- laha Chimalman, is given to the deity, and as likewise two families correspond to this deity and are said to reproduce his name, we must certainly suppose that the god had a twofold form, and that in con- trast to the sinister form of the bat there was another, more pleas- ing one. In other passages of the Popol Vuh the name Zotziha, " bat's house ", is given, not as that of a god, but as one of the regions which must be traversed on the way to the deepest depths of the interior of the earth, the kingdom of darkness and death. Plere dwells the Cama-Zotz, " the death bat the great beast who slays all who come in his way, and who also bit off the head of the hero Hunahpu when he descended to the lower world. Such images of death play a great part in the mythology of Mexican and Central American races. But, I repeat, they are always conceived of and usuall}^ drawn with their counter- part. « No doubt the Mexican Yaque, " they go", that is, " the departing", " those who go away a verbal form which is used with tolerable regularity in the texts in connection with death. ''Literally, "night [and] wind", a designation or epithet applied to the deity himself. But it is also especially given as the name of the god of the Nahuas, and represented in picture writing, it v/ould seem, by the double image of the death god and the wind god leaning back to back. " Popol Vuh, pp. 246, 248. Popol Vuh, p. 224. The passage is not correctly quoted by Brasseur de Bourbourg. seler] THE MAYA BAT GOD 235 Such is the scant}^ information to be gleaned from literary records regarding the singular figure of the bat god; but it is enough to show that in this case we have to do only with a form of the deity of mountain caverns, of cave worship, concerning which definite information has been transmitted to us from the regions of the Isthmus and from the tribes living north and south of it. This deity however, apparently belonged only to the Maya races and to the Zapo- tec-Mixtec tribes, who were nearly allied to them in civilization, and possibly also in language, while to the Mexicans this cult was appar- ently foreign. Now^, when I pass to the pictorial representations of this deity, I am at once in a position, strange as it may seem, to refer to such drawings in Mexican picture writing; and this is of special impor- tance, because there we are on more familiar ground. It is true, I am referring to manuscripts Avhich doubtless originated in regions lying somevrhat more to the south. The pictures to which I allude are taken from the Borgian, Vatican, and Fejervary codices. In each of these picture manuscripts there are a number of pages which invariably have four representations so combined that they form a whole, which, at the outset, leads us to conjecture that they were meant to correspond to the four cardinal points; that is, four periods of time coordinated with the cardinal points. In one of these representations (Borgian codex, pages 66 to 63), we find a per- fect conglomerate of pictures on the four pages. In the others (Codex Vaticanus B, pages 65, 66; Bologna codex, pages 12, 18; Fejervar}^ codex, pages 12, 11; Codex Vaticanus B, pages 72 to 75, and Fejervary codex, pages 4, 3) the separate representations seem to be copied to a certain extent from the above-mentioned pages of the Borgian codex. Pages 66 to 63 of the Borgian codex have in the center a tree which is growing from the body of a person and on which a bird is sitting. Above this there is a deity offering sacrifice. On the left is a ball- player, a pair in copulation, and a throne, upon which lies the head ornament of a deity, always that of the deity of the succeeding page. To the right, at the top, we have the felling or killing of an animal or of a mythologic figure ; below are Tzitzimime, figures plunging down from heaven, and a god producing fire by friction. Dates of years and days are also given, the sum total of w^hich is 52 years and 260 days, that is, an entire cycle and a tonalamatl, divided into four equal parts. The principal deity, the one offering sacrifice, on the first page ig the sun god. This page may, therefore, correspond to the east. The god of the second page is the god of the earth, or of stone. He must correspond to the north. The chief deity on the third page 236 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 Fig. 49. Mexican figures of the bat god. selek] THE MAYA BAT GOD 237 is the maize god. He corresponds to the west. The one on the last page is the death god, who corresponds to the south. Among the figures on the first page at the right of the chief deity, in some degree expressive of the fatal qualities of the latter, and corresponding to the east, is the bat god beside the sun god. I repro- duce the pictures of the god in a to figure 49, where c is taken from the encyclopedic representation in the Borgian codex, page 66, while a and 1) belong to separate series which have been copied out of it. The fact that we are dealing with the bat god is here expressed by the wing- membrane stretched between the legs and arms, the claws on the extremities, the sharp teeth, and particularly by the membranous nose leaf, which only in a is converted into a stone knife. The dark painting of the wing membrane and the death's-head upon it in a (instead of the crossbones of the Dieseldorff picture) especially remind us of the picture on the Dieseldorff vase. We are reminded of the functions of Cama-zotz, the death bat, by the head which the 6 Fig. 50. Maya hieroglyphs of the bat god. beast has torn olf and holds in his hand in a and while in c the beast devours the torn-out heart and the blood. It is worth noticing that in a and c the bat is drawn with the round cap and feather headdress of the wind god, while in 5, in addition to the torn-ofF head, he gi^asps and stands upon a fire snake. I now turn to the documents of the Maya races. The Mayas, in the strict sense, the inhabitants of Yucatan, designated one of their 18 uinals, that is, periods of 20 days, by the name of the bat-zotz (or zoo, according to Yucatec transcription). From the Relaciones of Bishop Landa and the Dresden manuscript I reproduce in Z>, figure 50, the picture of the bat as the designation of this period of time, which fell in the latter half of our September. That this designation was also known to the other Maya tribes we learn from the date (<", figure 50), compounded of the date of a day (8 Ahau) and a uinal date (the 8th of Zotz), which I copy from one of the Copan stelae as given in Maudslay's great work." In the same way the uinal Zotz is given, beyond a doubt, on the altar slabs of Palenque; for instance, on the « Biologia Centrali-.4mei-icana. Archaeology. 238 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 altar slab of the Temple of the Cross, number 1 (according to Desire Charnay's designation), where A-16 and B-16, belonging together, give the combined date 1 Ahau, 13 Zotz. But I also think that I recognize the hieroglyphs of the bat god among a series of 20 deities represented in hieroglyphs on pages 46 to 50 of the Dresden manuscript, accompanying a period of 2X52 years divided into five large sections, each of which is again divided into sections of 90, 250, 8, and 236 days. From this series of 20 deities 5 are copied on page 24; they are those which, at regular intervals, occupy the last place in each of the five divisions. In this way those seem to have been made prominent which are especially significant a h Fig. 51. Maya hieroglyphs of the bat god. for each of the five divisions. Among them occurs the hieroglyph, which — with a note of interrogation, it is true — I claim as the hiero- glyph of the bat god (see a, figure 50) . I think that I also recognize the bat god in the initial hieroglyph of the group which I reproduce in a, figure 51. The character kin, "sun is before the mouth of the beast. With reference to a hieroglyph which I shall discuss later I am tempted to interpret it as a swallow- ing up of light, that is, an obscuring of the sun. Finally, it has occurred to me that possibly the initial hieroglyph of the two groups which I giA^e in h, and which, on account of the picture accompanying it, I formerly explained as the hieroglyph of a bird of prey, ma.j also refer to the bat. For we have here, as in the SELER] THE MAYA BAT GOD 239 hieroglyph of the uinal Zotz, the character akbal, " night over the eye, as an eyebrow. Even the bat ears and the wrinkled corner of the mouth seem to be present in the hieroglyph. Instead of the teeth, the hieroglyph of a stone knife is given here. This may indicate the creature's sharp teeth, while it may possibly also have a symbolic meaning. The stone knife symbolizes the power of the sun's beams to inflict injury. In Mexican representations the monster of the night swallows a stone knife. The bat is frequently met with on the Copan reliefs. An entire fig- ure of the deity, which I give in (2, figure 52, can be recognized on altar T (Maudslay's nomenclature) a huge reptilian figure, with a head ^ Fig. 52. Maya hieroglyphs of the bat god. resembling an alligator's and Avith hands, between whose outstretched fore and hind legs various deities or mythologic figures are rep- resented. The bat here begins the series of personages represented on the east side, while on the west side, opposite to it, a bird with speckled feathers and parrot like beak is the first of the series — possibly the cakix, the Arara, worshipped as a deity by the Ah-zotzil clan, " the bat people ", who were allied to the Cakchikels.* The bat occurs with greatest frequency in a hieroglyph some forms of which I have given in a, figure 53. Besides the head of the bat, which is sometimes very characteristically reproduced, with its mem- branous nose leaf and hairy ear, the double element ben-ik is also present in this hieroglyph, which perhaps — for it also occurs with " Xahila's Cakchikel-Annalen, place cited, sec. 10. 240 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 others in the hieroglyph of the sun god — is an expression of that which the Mayas designated by u pop u cam, and the Mexicans by i-petl-i-icpal, "his mat", "his (royal) seat", that is, for dominion. Lastly, there is yet another element present in the hieroglyph, which, taking other cases of its occurrence into consideration, I can only explain as a stream of blood flowing from the bat's mouth, derived from an element which I have shown to possess the phonetic value of kan, " yellow ",« and to be used as a substitute for kin, " smi ".^ In other words, I regard this element of the hieroglyph as nothing else than an expression of that characteristic of the bat god which is set h Fig. 53. Maya hieroglyphs of the bat god. forth in the name Cama-zotz and in the pictures of the Mexican manuscripts, especially c, figure 49, that is, the destruction of life, the devouring of light. We are familiar with this element in other hiero- glyphs, particularly in that of a god who is the fifth in the series of twenty deities in the Dresden manuscript, and who undoubtedly is a god of the earth (6, figure 53). It has long since been remarked that the head of this deity reappears in the conventional sign for the cardinal point of the north. But, while in the hieroglyph of the god the head of the god is represented, according to my conception, as devouring light or life, in the hieroglyph of the cardinal point the ° Zeitschrift fiir BthBologie, y. 23, pp. 108-9. " Science, January 6, 1893. seler] THE MAYA BAT GOD 241 Lead of the god is combined with an open jaw, which is occasionally replaced by a stone knife, h. Hence the correspondence to which I allude above is also apparent here. In conclusion, I give in 5, figure 52, a very remarkable form of this hieroglyph which occurs on Stela D of Copan (Maudslay's nomen- clature) . This stela is peculiar inasmuch as the hieroglyphic elements, which elsewhere are reproduced in conventional characters, are here carried out in full figure. This particular stela is, therefore, of the first importance as an aid to the discovery of the true meaning of these elements. In figure 52, the f6rm of the bat, the nose leaf, and the wing membrane are distinctly recognizable. The element which I interpret as the devouring of light is indicated by a series of drops and a piece that looks like a ring cut out of a shell. This element, wdiich answers to kan, or kin, also has the same form in the hiero- glyphs reproduced in figure 58. The Ben-Ik group is wanting in h, figure 53, probably because it expresses only a secondary meaning. On the heads and the body in a, figiu^e 52, as m several of the bat heads brought together in «, figure 53, the elements of the day sign Cauac are given, which in the last of the hieroglyphs in a, figure 53, is seen in full below the bat's ear. The character Cauac corresponds to the Mexican Quiauitl, " rain and to Ayotl, the tortoise ", of the Guatemalan calendar. It combines within itself, as I have shown elscAvhere," the idea of opaque covering and of stoiie. We have in the vase excavated by Mr Dieseldorfi' a very character- istic figure of the bat god. In this connection, I Avould like to mention that the god described by Dieseldorff as having been found as a deco- ration on pottery, the god in the snail shell, ^ does not answ^er to the old god, the sixteenth in the Dresden manuscript, but rather to the third one of the gods represented on plates 4 to 10 of the Dresden manuscript. If I were still somewhat uncertain as to whether the bat god can be recognized among the five deities given in the hieroglyphs on page 24 of the Dresden manuscript, the god in the snail shell is unquestionabl}^ represented. As I am forced to conclude from the other places where it occurs that the latter god corresponds to the south, so the bat god, if he is really represented by hieroglyph figure 50, must answer to the cardinal point of the east. . This would form a fresh link and furnish another proof, either that even in slight details there existed a fundamental agreement between the mythic represen- tations of the Central American and Mexican peoples, or that with the calendar and everything connected w^ith it an exchange or dis- semination of such mythic elements took place throughout the whole of the ancient cultural reoion. o « Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, v. 23, p. 132. " Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, v. 25, Verhandlungen, 1893, pp. 379 and 548. 7238— No. 28—05 16 WALL PAINTINGS OF MITLA A MEXICAN PICTURE WRITING IN FRESCO BY 243 CONTENTS Page Description of Mitla . 247 The ancient Zapotec country, 258 Unity of Mexican and Central American civilization 266 Zapotec priesthood and ceremonials 275 Deities and religious conceptions of the Zapotecs 284 Explanation of the wall paintings 306 245 WALL PAINTINGS OF MITLA" By Editard Seler DESCRIPTION OF MITLA In the broad valley of Tlacolula, which, rising in a succession of terraces, inclosed by mountain ranges, and intersected by flat-topped ridges and isolated peaks, forms the eastern part of the wide and beautiful Valle de Oaxaca, lies the place which is called Yoopaa,^ or Lioo-baa, by the Zapotecs, and Mictlan by the Mexicans. It is situ- ated near the highest eastern end of the valley, at the foot of the mountain chain which separates it from the valley of Villa Alta and the mountainous regions of the Mixes. The two names of this place have the same meaning, " burial place ", or " place of the dead ". It was the burial city of the Zapotec kings and priests. It w^as a custom among the Zapotecs and the kindred tribes, Mixtecs, Cuicatecs, and their neighbors, the Mixes, to bury their dead chiefs and nobles in caves. There was probably a double reason for this custom. Throughout the world caves have been looked upon as entrances to the interior of the earth, to the underworld, to the kingdom of the dead. Among the Zapotecs and Mixtecs, however, there existed also the belief, which is met with among several other aboriginal tribes of America, that the ancestors of their race had risen from the inner depths of the earth to the light of the sun. Thus it was, in a certain way, the realm of the forefathers, their ancient home, in which they buried their dead when they laid them to rest in the sacred caves. « Wandmalereien von Mitla, eine mexikanischen Bilderschrift in fresko, nach eigenen an Ort und Stelle aufgenommenen Zeichnungen, herausgegeben und erUiutert von Dr Eduard Seler. Berlin, 1895. The dedication may be translated as follows : To His Excellency the Duke of Loubat, the generous promoter of the infant science of the new continent, these results of earlier journeys and studies are gratefully dedicated by the author. Steglitz, July, 1895. Burgoa translates it Lugar de Descanso, " resting place". Indeed the meaning "rest- ing ", " taking breath ", is contained in the root paa. For paa, and the allied form pee, means " breeze " wind ", " breath ", and the extended meaning " happiness ", " blessed- ness ", " peace ", " wealth ", can doubtless be traced back to this root. Paa also contains, by implication, the meaning " burial place " ; paa or queto-paa, sepultura, " tomb " ; paa- quie, sepultura de piedra, " stone tomb " ; paa-tao, sepultura labrada d poste, a " sepulcher made of posts " ; and it is perhaps most natural to accept this especial meaning here. 347 248 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 In the country of the Mixtecs the cave of Chalcatongo, situated on a high mountain, served as a burial place for their kings and great men, and Father Burgoa relates with indignation how, even in later Christian times, a cacique, esteemed by the priests for his godly life, accepted the last sacraments of the Christian Church and yet left behind him the behest that his earthly remains should be buried in that cave." The extensive caves in the limestone moun- tains (whence came its names of Yoopaa and Mictlan) imparted to this place its sacred character and caused the Zapotecs to choose it for the burial place of their kings and priests. There were also smaller caves in the place, called Zeetoba, "second burial place ", or Queui- quije-zaa, " the palace on the rock " ; in Mexican, Teticpac. It served as a burial place of the second (subordinate) rank. The peculiar notion connected with caves in specially favored situations, namely, that they indicated the places where the ancestors of the race had come forth from the earth, was, without doubt, the reason why Yoopaa, or Mictlan, was not only a burial place, but also the most important sanctuary of the country and the resi- dence of the high priest. He was called Uija-tao, " great prophet and was treated l)y the Zapotec kings, as Father Burgoa relates, with such submissive veneration and regarded as being so closely connected with the gods, being the direct distributor of their gracious gifts, as well as of their punishments, that the kings turned to him in all matters and in every need, and carried out his commands with the strictest obedience, even at the cost of their blood and their lives.^ It was in keeping with the twofold significance of the place that here in Yoopaa, or Mictlan, the most important and magnificent edifices were erected, and that here every form of art was employed which the ancient inhabitants of this country could command. Mic- tlan was doubtless not the only place in the Zapotec country where magnificent buildings were to be found. A beautifully sculptured tomb has been discovered in Xoxo, not far from Oaxaca.^' Moreover on the mountain citadel of Tlacolula and in Teotitlan del Valle we have found fragments of wall facings of stone mosaic very similar to the famous mosaics of Mitla which represent geometric designs. There are undoubtedly similar buildings to be found in other parts of this country, which as yet has been little exj^lored. The buildings of Mitla, however, have always been distinguished for their size, number, and magnificence, and we find in the very earliest reports enthusiastic and admiring descriptions of them. « p. Burgoa, Segunda Parte de la Historia de la Provincia de Predicadores de Guaxaca, Mexico, 1674, chap. 29. " Burgoa, work cited, chap. 53. '' See the description in Compte rendu du Congres international des America nistes, T'"*' session, Berlin, 1888, p. 126 et seq. There I have also given a small sketch of the tomb. SELER] DESCRIPTION OF MITLA 249 Father Torqiiemada writes : When some monks of my order, the Franciscan, passed, preaching and shriv- ing, through the province of Zapoteca, whose capital city is Tehiiantepec,& they came to a village which was called Mictlan, that is, " underworld ( hell ) ". Besides mentioning the large number of people in the village they told of buildings which were prouder and more magnificent than any which they had hitherto seen in New Spain. Among them was a temple of the evil spirit and living rooms for his demoniacal servants, and among other fine things there was a hall with ornamented panels, which were constructed of stone in a variety of arabesques and other very remarkable designs. There were doorways there, each one of which was built of but three stones, two upright at the sides and one across them, in such a manner that, although these doorways were very high and broad, the stones sufficed for their entire construction. They were so thick and broad that we were assured there were few like them. There was another hall in these buildings, or rectangular temples, which was erected entirely on round stone pillars, very high and very thick, so thick that two grown men could scarcely encircle them with their arms, nor could one of them reach the finger tips of the other. These pillars were all in one piece and, it was said, the whole shaft of a pillar measured 5 ells from top to bottom, and they were very much like tliose of the churcli of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, very skillfully made and polished. Father Bnrgoa gives a more exact description.^ He says: The palace of the living and of the dead was built for the use of this one (the high priest of tlie Zapotecs). * * * They built this magnificent house or pantlieon in the sliape of a rectangle, with portions rising above the earth and portions built down into tlie earth, the latter in the hole or cavity which was found below the surface of the earth, and ingeniously made the chambers of equal size by tlie manner of joining them, leaving a spacious court in the middle ; and in order to secure four equal chambers they accomplished what barbarian lieathen (as they were) could only achieve by the powers and skill of an architect. It is not known in wliat stone pit they quarried the pillars, whicli are so thick tliat two men can scarcely encircle tliem with their arms. These are, to be sure, mere shafts without capital or pedestal, but they are wonderfully regular and smooth, and they are about 5 ells liigh and in one piece. These served to support tlie roof, which consists of stone slabs instead of beams. The slabs are about 2 ells long, 1 ell broad, and half an ell thick, extending from pillar to pillar. Tlie pillars stand in a row, one behind the other, in order to receive the weight. The stone slabs are so regular and so exactly fitted that, without any mortar or cement at the joints, tliey resemble mortised beams. The four rooms, which are very spacious, are arranged in exactly the same way and covered witli tlie same kind of roofing. But in the construction of the walls the greatest architects of the earth have been sur- passed, as I have not found this kind of architecture described either among « Monarquia Indiana, v. 3, chap. 29. Without doubt this refers to Father Martin de Valencia and his eight companions, who went to Tehuantepec to embark there for China, and who stayed at the former place seven months. Since they could obtain no ships, they went back to Mexico. See Moto- linia, Historia de los Indios de la Nueva Espaiia, tratado 3, chap. 5 ; Mendieta, Historia Ecclesiastica Indiana, v. 4, chap. 10. In both places a description is given of the archi- tecture of Mitla, which corresponds in essential points with the description of Torquemada quoted above ; except that Mendieta calls the church in Rome Santa Maria la Redonda, and in Motolma this comparison is wholly wanting. f Work cited, chap. 53. That which he states, he says, he knows from old papers which have come into his hands and from traditions current among aged Indians. 250 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 the Egyptians or among the Greeks ; for they begin at the base with a narrow outline and, as the structure rises in height, spread out in wide copings at the top, so that the upper part exceeds the base in breadth and loolvs as if it would fall over. The inner side of the walls consists of a mortar or stucco of such hardness that no one knows with what kind of liquid it could have been mixed. The outside is of such extraordinary workmanship that on a masonry wall about an ell in height there are placed stone slabs with a projecting edge, which form the support for an endless number of small white stones, the small- est of which are a sixth of an ell long, half as broad, and a quarter as thick, and which are as smooth and regular as if they had all come from one mold. They had so many of these stones that, setting them in, one beside the other, they formed with them a large number of different beautiful geometric designs, each an ell broad and running the whole length of the wall, each varying in pattern up to the crowning piece, which was the finest of all. And what has always seemed inexplicable to the greatest architects is the adjustment of these little stones without a single handful of mortar, and the fact that without tools, with nothing but hard stones and sand, they could achieve such solid work that, though the whole structure is very old and no one knows who made it, it has been preserved until the present day. I carefully examined these monuments some thirty years ago in the chambers above ground, which are constructed of the same size and in the same way as those below ground and, though single pieces were in ruins because some stones had become loosened, there v. as still much to admire. The doorways were very large, the sides of each being of single stones of the same thickness as the wall, and the lintel was made out of another stone which held the two lower ones together at the top. There were lour chambers above ground and four below. The latter were arranged according to Their purpose in such a way that one front chamber served as chapel and sanctuary for the idols, which were placed on a great stone which served as an altar. And for the more important feasts which they celebrated with sacrifices, or at the burial of a king or great lord, the high priest instructed the lesser priests or the subordinate temple officials who served him to prepare the chapel and his vestments and a large quantity of the incense used by them. And then he descended with a great retinue, while none of the connnon people saw him or dared to look in his face, convinced that if they did so they would fall dead to the earth as a punishment for their boldness. And when he entered the chapel they put on him a long white cot- ton garment made like an alb, and over that a garment shaped like a dalmatic, which was embroidered with pictures of wild beasts and birds ; and they put a cap on his head, and on his feet a kind of shoe woven of many colored feathers. And when he had put on these garments he walked with solemn mien and measured step to the altar, bowed low before the idols, renewed the incense, and then in quite unintelligible nmrmurs (muy entre dientes) he began to con- verse with these images, these depositories of infernal spirits, and continued in this sort of prayer with hideous grimaces and writhings, uttering inarticu- late sounds, which filled all present with fear and terror, till he r-ume out of that diabolical trance and told those standing around the lies and fabrications which the spirit had imparted to him or which he had invented himself. When human beings were sacrificed the ceremonies were multiplied, and the assist- ants of the high priest stretched the victim out upon a large stone, baring his breast, which they tore open with a great stone knife, while the body writhed in fearful convulsions and they laid the heart bare, ripping it out, and with it the soul, which the devil took, while they carried the heart to the high priest that he might offer it to the idols by holding it to their mouths, among other cere- monies ; and the body was thrown into the l)urial place of their " blessed ", as BURFAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 28 PLATE XXII PLAN OF MITLA RUINS. OAXACA seler] DESCRIPTION OF MITLA 251 they called them. And if after the sacrifice he felt inclined to detain those who begged any favor he sent them word by the subordinate priests not to leave their houses till their gods were appeased, and he connnanded them to do pen- ance meanwhile, to fast and to speak with no woman, so that, until this father of sin had interceded for the absolution of the penitents and had declared the gods appeased they did not dare to cross their thresholds. The second (underground) chamber was the burial place of these high priests, the third that of the kings of Theozapotlan, whom they brought thither richly dressed in their best attire, feathers, jewels, golden necklaces, and precious stones, placing a shield in the left band and a javelin in the right, just as they used them in war. And at their burial rites great mourning prevailed ; the instruments which were i)layed made mournful sounds; and with loud wailing and continuous sobbing they chanted the life and exploits of their lord until they laid him on the structure which they had prepared for this purpose. The last (underground) chamber had a second door at the rear, which led to a dark and grewsome room. This was closed with a stone slab, which occupied the whole entrance. Through this door they threw the bodies of the victims and of the great lords and chieftains who had fallen in battle, and they brought them from the spot where they fell, even when it w^as very far off, to this burial place ; and so great was the barbarous infatuation of these Indians that, in the belief of the happy life which awaited them, many who were oppressed by dis- eases or hardships begged this infamous priest to accept them as living sacri- fices and allow them to enter through that portal and roam about in the dark interior of the mountain, to seek the great feasting places of their forefathers. And when anyone obtained this favor the servants of the high priest led him thither with special ceremonies, and after they had allowed him to enter through the small door they rolled the stone before it again and took leave of him, and the unhappy man, wandering in that abyss of darkness, died of hunger and thirst, beginning already in life the pain of his damnation ; and on account of this horrible abyss they called this village Liyobaa. When later there fell upon these people the light of the Gospel, its servants took much trouble to instruct them and to find out whether this error, connnon to all these nations, still prevailed, and they learned from the stories which had been handed down that all were convinced that this damp cavern extended more than 30 leagues underground, and that its roof was supported by pillars. And there were people, zealous prelates anxious for knowledge, who, in order to convince these ignorant people of their error, went into this cave accompanied by a large number of people bearing lighted torches and fire- brands, and descended several large steps. And they soon came upon many great buttresses which formed a kind of street. They had prudently brought a quantity of rope with them to use as guiding lines, that they might not lose themselves in this confusing labyrinth. And the putrefaction and the bad odor and the dampness of the earth were very great and there was also a cold wind which blew out their torches. And after they had gone a short distance, fearing to be overpowered by the stench or to step on poisonous reptiles, of which some had been seen, they resolved to go out again and to completely wall up this back door of hell. The four buildings above ground were the only ones which still remained open, and they had a court and chambers like those underground ; and the ruins of these have lasted even to the present day. One of the rooms above ground was the palace of the high priest, where he sat and slept, for the apartment offered room and opportunity for everything. The throne was like a high cushion with a high back to lean against, all of tiger skin, stuffed entirely with delicate feathers or with fine grass which was used 252 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 for this purpose. The other seats were smaller, even when the king came to visit him. The authority of this devilish priest was so great that there was no one who dared to cross the court, and to avoid this the other three chambers had doors in the rear, through which even the kings entered. For this purpose they had alleys and passageways on the outside above and below, by which people could enter and go out when they came to see the high priest. These priests never married, nor did they hold intercourse with women. Only, at certain feasts, which tliey celebrated with great banqueting and much drunkenness, the kings brought to them the unmarried daughters of the chief- tains, and if one of these became i^regnant she was taken to a retired spot until her confinement, so that if a son should be born he could be brought up as the successor of the priest in his office, for this succession always fell to the son or nearest relative and was never elective. The second chamber above ground was that of the priests and the assistants of the high i)riests. The third was that of the king when he came. The fourth was that of the other chieftains and captains, and though the space was small for so great a number and for so many different families, yet they acconnuodated themselves to each other out of respect for the place and avoided dissensions and factions. Furthermore, there was no other administration of justice in this place than that of the high priest, to whose unlimited power all bowed. All the rooms were clean and well furnished with mats. It was not the cus- tom to sleep on bedsteads, however great a lord might be. They used very taste- fully braided mats, which were spread on the floor, and soft skins of animals and delicate fabrics for coverings. Their food consisted usually of animals killed in the hunt ; deer, rabbits, armadillos, etc., and also birds, which they killed with snares or arrows. The bread, made of their maize, was white and well kneaded. Their drinks were always cold, made of ground chocolate, which was mixed with water and pounded maize. Other drinks were made of pulpy and of crushed fruits, which were then mixed with the intoxicating drink pre- pared from the agave, for since the common people were forbidden the use of intoxicating drinks, there was always an abundance of these on hand. This entire account of Mitla [the father adds in conclusion] was added to his history that he might be faithful to his promise, and although these things were, of course, full of superstition and impious error, still they wei-e the most important and intelligent manifestations of this nation which had fallen under his observation. I have translated and quoted this passage at length because it con- tains the account of an eyewitness who saw the monuments when the}^ were still in a tolerably intact condition, furnished still with the roof, which is now entirely gone; because this passage is the only one I know of, dating from ancient times, which gives an explanation con- cerning the purpose and significance of the different buildings; and because the book from Avhich the quotation is taken is extremely rare. In spite of much inquiry, I have heard of no library in Germany or Austria which contains the work. The position of the buildings as they stand to-day is seen on the plan given in plate xxii. This is draAvn, according to a plan made by the well-known architect, E. Miihlenpfordt, in the year 1831, with the addition of some details which were added from the results of per- sonal observations and after a recent drawing by Mr J. Leon. It is BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 28 PLATE XXIIi seler] DESCRIPTION OF MITLA 253 seen that tfiere are in all three groups of the principal buildings, which extend in a slight curve frpni the height down to the river. I have numbered the first I. For practical reasons I have numbered the second II and III. The third is designated IV. Inside the arc formed by these groups of buildings, but not near the center, lies a terraced pyramid, an ancient temple without doubt, which serves now as a cemetery and has a chapel on its upper platform. A court formed by broad, rampartlike elevations lies behind it. On ,the other side of the river there is a similar, smaller pyramid with several courts formed by rampartlike elevations. Each of the three chief groups of buildings, I, II-III, and IV, consists of a main building and an adjoining building (see the ground plan of palace I, plate xxiii). The main structure has a courtyard lying according to the four points of the compass, inclosed on three sides by buildings. Of these, the one situated on the north side of the court is the largest and most beautifully finished, and is con- nected by means of a narrow angular passage with a smaller adjoin- ing court, which is surrounded on all four sides by narrow, corridor- like chambers, and is completely closed from the outside. The position of the adjoining building varies somewhat. While in I it lies directly in front of the main building, those of III and IV lie a little to one side. These adjoining buildings also surround three sides of a court whose four sides face the four points of the compass. While, hoAvever, in the main buildings, the south side of the court remains open, in the adjoining buildings that is the case only in IV, I and III being open toward the west. The church and the priest's house are built into palace 1. Palace II is the best preserved and the most beautiful. It contains in the principal room, situated on the north side of the court, the row of six large monolithic pillars, which have always been considered the most remarkable proof of the technical skill of the ancient Zapotecs. As palace IV lies nearest the village it has been most despoiled, in order to furnish stones and other building materials for the huts of the present village. Only a few remains of masonry scattered about the garden are now left of this palace. If an attempt is made to identify the still remaining buildings after Burgoa's description, a certain difficulty arises at the very outset. Burgoa speaks of " four chambers " (quadras) or " halls " (salas), and says that remains of them had been found partly above ground (altos) and partly underground (bajos), and that the former were like the latter in size and the manner of their decoration. He furthermore says that one of the chambers found under- ground, the front one, had been a temple, sacrarium, or place for keeping the idols; another had served as burial place for the high priest; the third as the tomb of the kings and nobles of the realm; 254 BUKEAU OF AMEEICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 and the fourth had been connected with the great cave, whither they were accustomed to bring the bodies of the victims of sacrifice and of the chiefs who had fallen in battle. The chambers found above ground, he said, had served as dwellings, one for the high priest, the second for the rest of the priesthood, the third for the king, and the fourth for the families of the nobles who came to Mitla in the retinue of the king. Here, first of all, it is clear that " quadras " or "salas " could not have been used to designate the entire groups of buildings forming the palaces, for there are only three, not four, of these. Furthermore, we can not take literall}^ the statement that the underground cham- bers were exactl}^ like those above ground in the manner of decora- tion and in size. The onh^ building in which a crypt has been preserved, or rather excavated, is the larger eastern building of III. Here, however, the crypt does not have the form of the chamber above ground. The latter is an oblong rectangle in shape. The crypt is built in the shape of a cross, exactty like the crypt which was discovered in the village of Xaaga, three-fourths of a league from Mitla, and can still be seen. I think that Burgoa's statements refer only to the different parts of one grouj) of palace buildings; and there seems to be the greatest probability that Burgoa had in mind group II-III. In this one the hall Avith pillars lying on the north side of the main court of II might have formed, with its adjoining court, the dwelling of the high priest, the TJija-tao, and under it must have been the crypt that was " in front ", where the idols stood and where the high priest received his inspirations. The building situ- ated on the west side of the main court might have contained, above, the living rooms for the priesthood and, below, the burial place for the high priest. The building situated opposite, on the east side, might have been the dwelling and burial place of the king. We may probably consider the whole of palace III as the building where the majority of the nobles were quartered and where, at the rear of the crypt of the main building, a door led into the cave already described. Then this entrance would have been directly oj^posite the pyramid, on whose upper platform the sacrifices were doubtless performed. If this is the case, we must consider the three palace groups as undoubtedly constructed on a uniform plan, the individual buildings being designed for exactly similar purposes. We must, then, neces- sarily conclude further that there was in Mitla not one high priest only, but that besides him, perhaps subordinated to him, there must have been at least two other chief priests. This conclusion, however, is not unnatural or forced. On the contrary, this idea is very readily suggested by a comparison with the corresponding conditions in the capital, Mexico. Besides, Burgoa speaks plainly in another place of several high priests, Uija-tao, whom the king of SELER] DESCRIPTION OF MITLA 255 Tehiuiiitepec, Cocijo-pij, had summoned to him from Micthm." We also know that the " Zapotecos Serranos who lived on the other side of the mountains, in the forest valleyH of Villa Alta, had their special priests.'^ The appearance which the outer and inner fagades of these palaces present, with their projections and courses of coping and the wonder- ful ornamentation produced by geometric designs executed in raised stonework, is shown by the photographs which are reproduced on plates XXV to xxx. The pictures Avere taken in 1800 by order of the commfssion of the state of Oaxaca for the world's exposition in Paris. The number of designs in the panels of the wall is limited. Those which my wife and I observed in Mitla are reproduced in plates xxxi and XX XII from original drawings by my wife. A few additional designs are reproduced there which we saw in the crypt of Xaaga and in the neighborhood of the utterly ruined temple of Xaquie, or Teo- titlan del Valle. As to the technic of these designs, one might think, according to Burgoa's description quoted above, that they were formed of small stones Avhich had been set in a mass of stucco. That is by no means the case. The blocks, cut out of a light-colored tufaceous stone, laid one upon the other, form the outer and inner surface of the thick walls, which consist chiefly of mortar. They were sculptured on the outer side, perhaps even in their present posi- tion, in such a manner that a single stone of this kind shows on its exterior face a sunken and a projecting surface, the lines of demarca- tion running in steps, zigzag lines, or curves, according to the nature of the design of which they are a part. With this method of con- struction it is plain that no single portion can crumble and become detached, and therefore the patterns are still, in the main, as clear and unchanged as they were centuries ago. The height of the pro- jection above the sunken plane, which averages about 3 cm., and the extraordinarily sharp and perpendicular outline between the raised parts and the background cause the patterns to stand out with remarkable clearness and distinctness. In the background we find everywhere traces of red coloring, while the raised parts seem to have been left white, an inference also to be drawn from Burgoa's descrip- tion, where he speaks of " small white stones ". I need hardly point out that this contrast of color must have enhanced the effect of the pattern still more. Now, while the exterior aspect of these palaces and the ornamenta- « Burgoa, work cited, chap. 72 : Llevando de el gran adoratorio de Mictla los sacerdotes mayores como pontifices, k quienes Uaman Iluija-too, en su lengua, que quiere dezir " grande atalaya y el que lo ve todo " y otros sacerdotes menores que llaman copa vitoo " guarda de los Dioses " ("Bringing from the great temple of Mictla the high priests as pontiflces,whom they call in their language Huija-too, which means * great guard and he who sees all ', and other lesser priests whom they call copa vitoo, ' guardians of the gods ' "). Burgoa, work cited, chap. 56. 256 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 tion in raised geometric designs have been frequently depicted and described in former times, few of the authors who have hitherto written about Mitla have paid special attention to the frescoes which were over the middle door of each side of the adjacent courts, and portions of which are still to be seen. A manuscript atlas by the German architect E. Miihlenpfordt, which is preserved in the Instituto Publico at Oaxaca and has been reproduced in Peiiafiel's ^ great illustrated publication, is the only work in which, together with exact ground plans and elevations of the palaces, specimens are to be found of the mural paintings from each of the two courts where these paintings exist. It was Mr Pefiafiel who called my attention to these paintings, and T devoted eleven days during my sta}^ in Mitla with my wife, in June, 1888, to copying them, as far as they were still visible, so as to rescue, in sketches at least, what was still to be saved. The originals themselves will scarcely with- stand much longer the effects of the weather and the consequences of neglect. Just a few months before my arrival in Mitla a large and essential part of the paintings was knocked down incident to the important building of a pigsty in the court of the first palace, which has served for a long time and still serves as the stable of the priest's dwelling. The rest of the paintings are everywhere crumbling. The paintings are found, as has been mentioned, in the closed courtyards adjoining the palaces, which are accessible only by means of a narrow, angular passageway leading from the main building. Each side of these courts (compare the elevation on plate xxiv) has a doorway in the center and, over it, a narrow, rectangular, recessed panel. Then follows a narrow, sunken band which extends the whole length of the wall. Over this again there are three broader and shorter recesses cut into the wall, the middle one of which projects beyond the two on the sides. The doors in the center lead to narrow gallaries which surround the court on the four sides. On the south wall of the court, at one side of the principal doorway, is the opening of the angular passageway which joins the principal chamber of the corresponding palace with this closed adjoining court. The north wall of the adjacent court of palace I has three main entrances instead of one, and above these stretches evenly the narrow recessed panel considerably lengthened. The three upper shorter and broader recesses on all four sides of the court are filled with the characteristic geometric designs executed in raised stone- work. The lower narrow, recessed panels directly over the doorway have a coating of fine stucco, and it is this which is covered with paintings, in which the white figures contrast with the painted red background. * Pefiafiel, Monumentos del Arte Mexicano Antiguo, Berlin, 1890, atlas II, lamina 212-227. sblbe] DESCRIPTION OF MITLA 257 In the second palace, the hirgest and best preserved, there is now absokitely nothing to be seen of these paintings. Nevertheless, be- yond a doubt there were some here also, for the stucco coating, on which the paintings were executed in the other palaces, can be recog- nized here also in the narrow recessed panels over the doors. In the court adjoining the fourth palace, which is situated nearest to the river, the two side walls and the lower part of the third are still pre- served. On the east side there may still be recognized in the narrow recessed panels the upper edge of the painting with the beautiful bor- der, reproduced (fragment 1) on the first plate. The four fragments of painting which are reproduced under numbers 2 to 5 on this plate belong to the north side of this court. All the rest of the painting which is preserved belongs to the court adjoining the palace, which has the most elevated position, namely palace I. This palace has been turned into a priest's dwelling since the country was won over to Christianity, and in the midst of its buildings rises the church of San Pablo de Mitla. The adjoining court is used, according to a long- established custom, as a stable. The animals wander freely about the court, and against one of the sides a manger of masonry has been built under a protecting board roof. Both structures are very desir- able for the welfare of the animals, but they have been fatal to the paintings, for the posts which support the penthouse have been driven into the wall. A part of the painting has also been entirely walled in for the construction of the manger. Finally, as I have already mentioned, a pigsty has very recently been built against the north side of the court. That could likewise not be done without serious injury to the painting. On the other hand, we must be just and recognize that perhaps the very reason why the paintings have been still so largely preserved in this portion of these historic remains is because this court, as a part of the parsonage, has been withdrawn from general observation and use; that is, from general exploitation and demolition. Before I turn to the description and explanation of these pictures, it seems to me to be appropriate to ])ut together from existing sources what is known concerning the nature and character of the religious conceptions of the Zapotecs. 7238— No. 28—05 17 THE ANCIENT ZAPOTEC COUNTEY Only very scant information has come down to us concerning the ancient Zapotec country. The Mexicans were evidently very little in touch with its inhabitants. Not even the name of the Zapotecs is mentioned in any one of the lists of nations which were compiled by the historians of ancient Mexico. There were always other tribes between them and the Mexicans, and these bounded the ethnic horizon, at least from the current Mexican point of view ; nor did the other- wise well-informed Mexican who gave Father Sahagun an account " of all the tribes which came into this country to settle here " men- tion the Zapotecs. He gives a detailed account of the tribes adjacent to the Mexicans, and gives very interesting information concerning some of the northern nations, but of the southern he mentions ex- pressly only the Couixca, Tlapaneca, and Yopi. All the rest appear to be classed under the head of nations " living at the rising of the sun whom he designates as Olmeca Uixtotin Mixteca, and also as Olmeca Uixtotin Nonoualca, or simply as Anahuaca, " maritime people ". The great trading expeditions first brought the Mexicans in touch with the Zapotec tribes, and these expeditions were directed first and foremost to the Atlantic tierra caliente. Tuxtepec, on the Rio Papaloapan, was the first large trading post. The next points to be reached Avere Tabasco and Xicalango. The latter was the great cen- ter where the merchants assembled from all parts of the Central American world and from which led the commercial highways to Chiapas, Soconusco, and Guatemala, up the Usumacinta, and across the country to the Golfo Dulce and to Honduras, finally northward by way of Champoton and Campeche to the more thickly populated portions of the peninsula of Yucatan. The Mexican merchants seem already to have found the road to Xicalango in early times and to have made use of it. Perhaps they even pressed on farther from that point at an early period. The various swarms of Mexican popula- tion which we find diffused far toward the south, almost to the Isth- mus, appear to have taken this route. It was not until a compara- tively late date, however — and for this there exists positive proof — that the Mexicans succeeded in pushing forward to the Pacific tierra caliente, the fertile plains of Tehuantepec, the region of Zapotec expansion, and then only after the partial subjugation of the Zapotec tribes by the united strength of the states of the Mexican table-land. At an early period, when Mexican commerce was directed mainly to the Atlantic tierra caliente, a permanent Mexican settlement was 258 seler] THE ANCIENT ZAPOTEC COUNTRY 259 already made in the Zapotec region. Tradition relates that in the wild forests of Mictlanquauhtla some inhabitants of the city of Uaxyacac murderously attacked and plundered a Mexican caravan which was returning home from Tabasco with costly goods, the news of which did not reach the Mexicans until years later. The king who was then reigning, Motecuhzoma the elder, surnamed Ilhuicamina, equipped an expedition to avenge the deed, and the crime was atoned by the extermination of the entire tribe. A number of Mexi- can families and about GOO families from neighboring cities situ- ated in the valle}^ of Mexico started out to settle the vacant lands of the exterminated tribe, under the leadership of four Mexican chief- tains whom the king had chosen for this expedition. They proceeded but slowly, and at every halting place a few^ remained behind. When Uaxyacac was finally reached, the lands were divided among the colo- nists, to the great satisfaction of the tribes living in the vicinity, ac- cording to a remarkable statement in the chronicle. The people of Quauh- tochpan, Tuxtepec, and Teotitlan, who " Avere on the coasts of Uaxya- cac ", that is, bordered on Uaxyacac, were especially pleased."^ Assault and assassination of Mexi- can merchants are almost always men- tioned as the casus belli in the native records. It seems very probable that in this case these really were the actual cause of war. It is at any rate obvious from the above story that the permanent settlement of fig.54. symbols from the Mendoza Mexicans in Uaxyacac was a conse- codex, quence of the commercial intercourse which the Mexicans maintained with Tabasco, and that it was made in order to insure the safety of this intercourse. On the road to Tabasco lay also the three cities which are named in the report above quoted as those which were especially pleased at this new settlement. Up to the time of the Spaniards, the Mexicans were thus settled in the immediate neighborhood of the Zapotec ro3^al city, in the original and hereditary seat of the Zapotec nation. This colony was always looked upon by the Mexican kings as an important place. It was un- der the special control of two high Mexican officials bearing the titles Tlacatectli and Tlacochtectli (see figure 5J:, from the Mendoza codex, page 16), and doubtless had the character of a military colony. In the new order of affairs arising out of the Spanish conquest, the inhab- itants of this Mexican village were allotted to the newly founded » Tezozomoc, Cronica Mexicana, chap. 39. 260 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 Spanish city Segura de la Frontera, or Antequera, as it was later called. So it chanced that the old native name of this Mexican vil- lage, which means at the hill of algarobas Avas transferred, with a somewhat changed pronunciation, as Oaxaca or Oajaca, to the Span- ish city, and now not only this city is called by that name, but the whole state whose territory is governed from this city. The existence of a Mexican colony in the midst of Zapotec territory naturally implied a certain restraint, the recognition, in fact, of the superior power of the Mexicans. Therefore it does not seem remark- able that in the tribute list of the Mexican kings various neighboring Zapotec cities were named, besides Uaxyacac, which had to pay tribute to the capital, Mexico. The tribute consisted chiefly of fine textiles, besides which a certain quantity of cereals, 20 gold disks, and 20 small sacks of cochineal had to be furnished.'' This fact, however, must by no means be interpreted to mean that the Mexicans exercised authority over tlie entire Zapotec country. It can not even be said that the cities which are named in the list were subject directly to Mexican rule. For there are among them those which we know cer- tainly to have been under the so\'ereignty of the Zapotec kings, as Etla, which was called by the Zapotecs Loo-uanna, " place of pro- visions ", the city of Teticpac, already mentioned above, and the Zap- otec frontier station Quauhxilotitlan, now San Pablo Huitzo.^ This relation is probably best explained by assuming that the Zapotec cities named on page 4G of the Mendoza codex agreed to the payment of "The hieroglj'ph of the city given above in fig. 54 sliows the conventional drawing of a mountain (tepetl), which is frequently simply an expression of the fact that the com- posite sign represents a hieroglyphic picture of a place name. On the mountain is seen an algaroba tree (uaxin), recognized by the great fruit pods (edible) with wavy edges, growing out of the nose (yacatl) of a human face. The "nose" signifies also in an extended meaning, " point ", " projection ", " front ". The Tlacatectli is designated in fig. 54 by the royal headband of the Mexicans in turquoise mosaic ; the Tlacochtectli, by a similar headband with the shaft of an arrow in it. The name Uaxyacac is plainly Mexican. The city is called by the Zapotecs, Mixtecs, Cuicatecs, Chinantecs, and Mixes, l)y other names, namely Luhu-Iaa, Nuhu-ndua, Naha- nduva, Ni-cuhui, Uac-uim, but all of these have about the same meaning, namely, " at the point of algarobas " or " at the place of algarobas ". Naturally, it can no longer be settled whether these names are translations of the Mexican name or whether the latter, on the other hand, was a translation of an original Zapotec name. Mendoza codex, pi. xlvi. The names of this place have undergone several changes in meaning. The Mexican name Quauhxilotitlan means " among the quauhxilotes "', or among trees whose (edible) fruit has the form of a young ear of maize This name appears already at an early period to have been changed into Guaxolotitlan by defective and faulty pronunciation. Burgoa uses it in this form. According to that, Gracida explains the name as " place of the guajo- lotes ", that is, of the turkeys, in his otherwise very useful little book, Catalogo Etimolo- gico de los Nombres, etc., de Oaxaca. The place was called by the Zapotecs Uiya-zoo, " espier of the enemy ", because it served as an outpost on the frontier and commanded the great cafiada, the principal road communicating with the Mexican highlands. This old Zapotec name can be plainly recognized by the manner in which I myself heard it pro- nounced on the spot, namely, Uizo. The official spelling of the name, Huitzo, refers it back incorrectly to a Mexican root, uitz-tli, " thorn ". seler] THE ANCIENT ZAPOTEC COUNTRY 261 certain contributions to the Mexicans in order to remain unmolested by them. The settlement of the Mexicans in Uaxyacac is said to have occurred under the rule of the elder Motecuhzoma; that is, in the period between about 1440 and 1470 A. D. That would be about a hundred years after the period in which, as Father Burgoa says, the Zapotecs spread toward the south and began to conquer the fruitful coast strips of Jalapa and Tehuantepec." The account which Father Burgoa gives of this conquest, derived from the narratives of the Zapotecs, is far from clear and its details are scarcely credible. The conquest is said to have been made with the assistance of Mixtec allies. The Zapo- tecs, it is said, met Mexican hosts there side by side with the Huave, a tribe wliich had emigrated from the south and which at that time inhabited the entire coast strip of that region, the fertile and produc- tive territory of Tehuantepec being habitually used by the Mexicans as a resting place and rendezvous for the expeditions sent out to con- quer Guatemala. The Zapotec king is said to have then held the Mexican forces in check in a mountain fastness by the river of Tehuantepec — only the Quiengola can be meant from the descrip- tion — and to have done them so much harm that the Mexican king (Burgoa still speaks only of Motecuhzoma) was obliged to consent to a cessation of hostilities and an arrangement.^ This account, as has been said, is not at all authentic. It confuses earlier events with later ones and recognizes, naturally, only the glorious deeds of the Zapotecs. The settlement of the Pacific coast strip must indeed have occurred a long time before the Mexicans entered this territory; for, as the most reliable sources unite in stating, it was not until the time of Auitzotl, that is, at the very end of the tifteenth century, that the Mexicans extended their expeditions into this Pacific coast district, the Anauac Ayotlan, the '* coast land of Ayotlan as the Mexicans called it. The advance post of the Mexicans in Uaxyacac probabl}^ afforded the rallying point for these Mexican enterprises. The motive for these expedi- tions was also without doubt commercial advancement. The mer- chants boasted of having alone set on foot and carried through these expeditions.*^ The operations began, it seems, with attacks upon the cities of the Zapotec country proper, the Valle de Oaxaca. According to the "Burgoa, work cited, chap. 71: Y de suerte se apooeraron les Zapotecos de mas de 300 alios a esta parte en su gentilidad, que llenaron todos los sitios aeomodados de poblaciones ("So that more than 300 years ago the Zapotecs conquered this country in their paganism, and filled all the convenient sites with towns"). Since Father Burgoa wrote about the middle of the seventeenth century, we may consider the middle of the fourteenth century as the date of this conquest. ^ Burgoa, work cited, chap. 72. " See Sahagun, v. 9, chap. 2. 262 BUKEAU OF AMEKICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 interpreter of the Codex Telleriano-Remensis, the Mexicans sub- jugated " the city of Mictla in the province of Huaxaca " in the year 2 Tochtli, or A. D. 1494, and " the city of Teotzapotlan, which was the capital of the province of Huaxaca in the year 3 Acatl, or A. D. 1495. This information is interesting because mention is made^ here of the conquest or destruction of the Zapotec city of priests and tombs, Yoopaa, or Mictlan, by the Mexicans in pre- Spanish times. The picture writing itself « does not entirely agree with this interpretation. In it only the conquest of Uaxyacac and Teotzapotlan — which may refer, of course, to the entire province, that is, to the whole valley — is expressed by the hieroglyphs of these two names and a prisoner of war adorned for the sacrificio gladia- tor io (figure 55). Fig. 55. Symbols from the Codex Telleriano-Remensis. In the coast land the expeditions doubtless extended through sev- eral years, for the subjugation of the cities of the coast land is not reported until the year 5 Calli, or A. D. 1497, and in this report Chimalpahin, Codex Vaticanus A, and Historia Mexicana of the Aubin-Goupil collection agree. Chimalpahin * mentions Xochitlan, Amaxtlan, and Tehuantepec as the cities which were conquered in this year by the Mexicans. Codex Vaticanus A ^ and Historia " Part 4, pi. 22. The name Uaxyacac is expressed here simply by the picture of the algaroba tree ; the name Teotzapotlan, by the picture of the sapodilla tree. Afiales de Domingo Francisco de San Anton Munon Chimalpahin Quauhtleliuanitzin. Ed. Remi Simeon, Paris, 1889, pp. 10 and 167. <^ Codex Vaticanus A, page 127. Amaxtlan is expressed by the combination of a breech- cloth (maxtlatl) and the sign for water (atl), which are to be seen on the conventional painting of the mountain. Xochitlan is expressed by a flower (Xochitl) and an undeter- mined element, which is perhaps intended to represent a row of teeth (tlantli). The battle is represented in the former city, the victory in the latter. seler] HE AKCIENT ZAPOTEC COUNTRY 263 Mexicana of the Aiibin collection " mention only Xochitlan and Amaxtlan (figures 50 and 57). According to the accounts of the Mexican merchants, which are preserved for us in the work of Father Sahagun,^ this expedition to Tehuantepec was an independent enter- prise of the great merchants of Mexico, Tlatelolco, and the other allied cities. They were besieged four years, the story goes, in o o o o o m Fig. 56. Battle scene from Mexican painting, Aubin-Goupil collection. Quauhtenanco (" forest stronghold " blockhouse? ") by the united contingents of the cities of Anahuaca — Tehuantepec, Izuatlan, Xocht- lan, Amaxtlan, Quatzontlan, Atlan, Omitlan, and Mapachtepec. « Histoire de la Nation Mexicaine depuis le depart d'Aztlan. Manuscripts Figuratifs des Anciens Mexicains. Copie du codex de 1576. Collection de M. E. Eugene Goupil (ancienne collection, Aubin). Nos. 35, 36 du Catalogue. Paris, 1893, p. 76. * Sahagun, v. 9, chap. 2. 264 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL, 28 The struggle is said to have ended at last in a decided victory for the merchants and the taking of numerous captives by them. In like manner the chronicle of Tezozomoc " relates the complete conquest and subjugation of this territory. Xochitlan, Amaxtlan, Izuatlan, Miauatlan, Tehuantepec, and Xolotlan are named by Tezo- zomoc as the cities against which this warfare was directed. There is probably no doubt that these enterprises were so far suc- cessful that the Zapotecs were forced from this time forward to allow the Mexican merchants to pass through to the regions on the Pacific coast and to grant them freedom of trade in their own terri- tory. It must indeed have been a successful war for the Mexicans, according to all the records, for it filled their slave markets and fur- nished the altars of the gods with sacrifices. These expeditions, how- ever, did not result in a conquest and the lasting subjugation of the Zapotec country. The Zapotec kings remained as independent after- ward as they had been before 1 r>oOoo Fig. 57. Mexican symbols of years and pueblos. and as well prepared to meet the invading Mexican hosts by force of arms. Indeed, tlie Mexican kings, owing to clearly understood commercial interests, evidently felt the need of entering into a treaty with the Zapotecs. This is proved by the bestowal of a Mexican princess in marriage upon the Zapotec king, Cocijo- eza, a fact which is told alike by Father Burgoa,^ who drew his information from Zapotec sources, and by the interpreter of the Codex Telleriano-Remensis.'- This alliance did not, of course, put a stop to intrigues on the part of the Mexicans. Indeed, this Mexican princess, who was called " cotton flake " (Zapotec Pelaxilla : prob- ably, Mexican Ichcatlaxoch) , gained especial fame and honor among the Zapotecs because she did not comply with the demands made upon her by her father, but betrayed the plans of the Mexicans to her hus- band, the Zapotec king. The son of Cocijo-eza and of this Mexican princess was Coci jo-pi j, the last king of Tehuantepec. When Cortes landed on the coast of Mexico and overthrew the supremacy of the Mexicans by his skillful management and mili- tary power he was joyfully hailed by the Zapotecs, as well as by the Totonacs and the Tlascaltecs, as their deliverer from the power of o Cr6nlca Mexicana, chap. 75, 76. " Burgoa, work cited, chap. 72. " Part 4, pi. 23, in connection with the year Tochtli, or A. D. 1502. selkh] THE ANCIENT ZAPOTEC COUNTRY 265 the Mexicans. The Thiscaltecs first measured their strength with Cortes before they allied themselves with him, but from that time on they cleared the wa}^ for him and fought his battles as devoted and faithful allies. The Zapotecs submitted unconditionally from the be- ginning to the Spanish conqueror, turned to him when the Mixtec prince of Tototepec threatened an attack, and received Cortes with great splendor when he came down as far as Tehuantepec in later years. The Zapotecs, nevertheless, very soon became aware of the poor exchange they had made. It was in the territory of the Zapo- tecs that Cortes selected the best lands, the Valle de Oaxaca and the fruitful, well-watered vegas of Jalapa, in order to form from them his earldom, his family estate. However, " Cortes granted a moder- ate allowance in money (le hizo donacion de alguna ayuda de costa)" to the king of Tehuantepec " w^ith Avhich to support the small family which still remained to him " and while the king, who was baptized with the name Don Juan Cortes, built monasteries for the monks with great liberality and furnished them w^ith lands, gardens, fish ponds, etc., the monks seized and imprisoned him because he fell away from the true faith and performed diabolical ceremonies. After long and wearisome processes he was sentenced by the highest court in Mexico to lose his dignities and all his remaining possessions. He died, while returning from Mexico, in Nexapa, just as he had once more set foot on the soil of his former kingdom. a Burgoa, work cited, chap. 72. UNITY OF MEXICAN AND CENTRAL AMERICAN CIVILI- ZATION The Zapotecs and their kindred were a nation unrelated to the Mexicans. If they can be classed with any of the great language groups belonging to the region of the ancient Mexican-Central Amer- ican civilization, it can only be the Maya group. Indeed, a number of roots and many structural peculiarities of the language seem to indicate such a connection. The whole region of ancient Mexican- Central American civilization is, how^ever, a conspicuous example of what Adolph Bastian calls a " geographical province ". For, inde- pendent of a ling-uistic difference, we find the special elements of Mexican civilization developed in an exactly similar way among all the peoples of this territory. This is true of the general conduct of life, the technical and military customs, the organization of state and of society, but more especially of religion and learning. The unity of this entire region of ancient civilization is most clearly expressed by the calendar, which these people considered the basis and the alpha and omega of all high and occult knowledge. This calendar is a special product of Central American culture. Its essential peculiarities are the adoption of the fundamental number 20 as the leading unit, and the combination of this leading unit with the number 18. These are features which appear in no other calen- dric system hitherto known." Within the region of Central Ameri- can civilization not only are these two essential peculiarities to be met with in the calendars of all the civilized nations, but also a close correspondence in the names of the individual days of a lead- ing unit. This I have demonstrated in regard to the Maya territory in my work entitled " Uber den Charakter der aztekischen und der Maya-Handschriften and regarding the Zapotec territory in a work on Mexican chronology which appeared in 1891.^ The Zapotec calendar is distinguished from those used by the other nations by cer- tain peculiarities which one is tempted to consider evidences of special antiquity, but which are, perhaps, only the result of a particular development and an especial use for augural purposes. " Cyrus Thomas attempted to show relation of the Central American calendar to that used in Hawaii. This attempt, however, must be pronounced an utter failure. The ancient inhabitants of Hawaii had a kind of actual month of .30 days ; and the only agreement with the Mexican calendar could be the fact that 12x30, like 18X20, gives the number 360, thus leaving a surplus of 5 days in the year. " Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, v. 20, 1888, p. 1 and following. " Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, v. 23, 1891, p. 89 and following. 266 seler] UNITY OF CIVILIZATION 267 Like all other things and every event of the world, the calendar was governed b}^ relations to space b}^ the powers ruling in the four points of the compass. This was true of the simple calendar, the so-called tonalamatl, of 13X20, or 260, days, and of the greater periods of time, the 4X13, or 52, solar years, which, as I have demonstrated in another place," were developed necessarily and logically from that simple calendar. These greater periods of time, that is to say, the single components of the same, the successive, years each bearing the name of one of four signs, stood in a specialh^ close relation to the points of the compass. The reference of the years to the cardinal points, therefore, was quite common to both the Mexicans and the Mayas. The Zapotecs referred also the simple tonalamatl to the four points of the compass, and therefore divided it into four sections of 65 days each. According to the conception of the Zapotecs, each of these periods was governed by the sign which gave the name to its first day, that is, by the signs which were called in Zapotec quia Chilla, quia Lana, quia Goloo, and quia Guiloo, and in Mexican ce Cipactli (" 1 alligator "), ce Miquiztli (" 1 death ce Ozomatli (" 1- monkey"), ce Cozcaquauhtli 1 king vulture"). The Zapotecs named these four powerful signs and the days Cocijo, or Pitao. " They offered to them their sacrifices and the blood which they drew from different parts of their bodies, the ears, the tip of the tongue, the thighs, and other members. The order which they observed in doing so was this : As long as the 65 days of the one sign lasted, they sacrificed to this sign, and at the expiration of these, to the next which came in turn, and so on until the first sign recurred ; and they prayed to this sign for everything which they needed for the sus- tenance of life ".^ Pitao, or bitoo, means " the great one ", " the god ". Cocijo, on the other hand, corresponds to the Mexican Tlaloc, the god of rain, storms, and mountains. It is translated in the dictionary by " rain god" (dios de las lluvias) and "lightning" (rayo).^ The rain god dwells in the four points of the compass, and varies according to these four points. Therefore the Mayas do not speak of the one rain god, Chac, but always of the four Chacs. The story runs also among the Mexicans that the rain god lived in four chambers, and that there was a great court in the middle where stood foitr great casks of water. The water in one of these Avas said to be very good, and the rain came from it at the right time, when the grain and the corn were growing. In the next the water Avas said to be bad, and the rain which came « Zeitschrift fiir Ethnologie, v. 231, 1891, pp. 89-91. ^ Juan de Cordova, Arte en Lengua Zapoteca, Mexico, 1578, p. 202. ^ See also Totia peni quij cocijo, " sacrificar hombre por la pluvia 6 nino (to sacrifice a man for rain, or a child)"; tace cocijo, " caer rayo del cielo (to flash lightning from heaven) ". The name cocijo probably means the same as cozaana, that is, " the procrea- tor ". See cociyo, huechaa, huichaana, cozaana, pichijgo, linage generalmente. 268 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [BULL. 28 from it produced fungous growths in the corn, which turned black. It came from the third when it rained and froze; from the fourth, when it rained and no corn came up or when it came up and dried. This rain god, in order to produce rain, was said to have created many helpers in the form of dwarfs, who lived in the four chambers and carried sticks in their hands and jars into which they drcAV water from the great casks, and if the god commanded them to water some strip of land they took their jars and sticks and poured out water as Fig. r)8. The five rain gods, from the Borgian codex. they had been commanded; if there was a flash of lightning it was from something they" had in the water or from the cracking of the jar."^ This reference of the four sections of the calendar to the rain god, who varied according to the four points of the compass, which is shown by the designation cocijo or pitao for the initial Zapotec signs of these four sections, is of special interest, inasmuch as it furnishes the explanation for some very remarkable pages of the picture manu- " Historia de los Mexicanos por sus Pinturas, chap. 2 ; Garcia y Icazbalcela, Nueva Coleccion de Documentos para la Historia de Mexico, v. 3, Mexico, 1891, p. 230. sbler] UNITY OF CIVILIZATION 269 scripts. In the Borgian codex, which is one of the best and most beautifully executed manuscripts of Mexican antiquity that we pos- sess, there is found, on page 12, the complicated representation which I have reproduced here in figure 58. Placed in the order of a quincunx, we see five different pictures of the rain god, each holding in one hand a handled jug of the face-jug type (the face being that of the rain god) and in the other hand a snake Avhich is bent in the form of a hatchet. The four figures at the corners are ascribed b}^ the marginal numerals and signs to the initial days of the four divisions of the tonalamatl; ce Cipactli (" 1 alligator "), ce Miquiztli (" 1 death"), ce Ozomatli ("1 monkey"), ce Cozcaquauhtli (" 1 king vulture"), and also to the initial years of the four divisions of the cycle of 52 years: ce Acatl (" 1 reed "), ce Tecpatl (" 1 flint "), ce Calli (" 1 house "), ce Tochtli (" rabbit "). There are no day or year signs given with the fifth figure, the one in the center. The first figure, the low^er one on the right, represents the east. To it belongs the first division of the tonalamatl, designated by its initial day, " 1 alligator ", also the first division of the great cycle, desig- nated by its initial year, " 1 reed ". This figure is painted a dark color and wears as a helmet mask the sign of the tonalamatl division to which it belongs, a cipactli (alligator) head. A cloudy sky, promis- ing rain, is spread above the god, and under him lies extended the cipactli, as the Mexicans call it, the pichijlla in Zapotec, the alligator, the symbol of the fruitful earth, from all parts of whose body the ears and tassel of the maize plant are seen sprouting. The water ^hich streams to the earth from the jug and from the hatchet-shaped lightning serpent of the gods brings down with it more maize ears and tassels. The rain god of the east is represented in every respect as a good and fruitful god. The second figure, the upper one on the right, represents the north. The second division of the tonalamatl and the second division of the cycle, represented respectively by the first day, " 1 death ", and the first year, " 1 flint ", belong to it. This figure is painted yellow and wears as a helmet mask the sign of the second tonalamatl division, a death's-head. A clear, sunny sky, sending down rays of light, stretches above the god. There are three vessels below him, appar- ently filled with water. This water, however, is painted the brown color of stone instead of the blue of Avater, and in it are seen the bony nose and the eye of a death's-head. It is an obvious attempt to represent the water as dead, dried up. Winged insect shapes, wearing death's-heads, eat the ears of maize Avhich stand in these dry Avater basins. In the water, however, which streams down from the jug which the god holds, as well as in that which comes from his hatchet-shaped lightning serpent, there descends a hatchet, the sym- 270 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 28 bol of the god who strikes with lightning. This rain god of the north, therefore, designates drought, death, and famine. The third figure, the upper one on the left, represents the west. The third division of the tonalamatl and the third division of the cycle belong to it, represented respectively by the initial day, " 1 monkey and the initial year, " 1 house ", belong to this one. The figure of the god is painted blue, and he wears as a helmet mask the sign of the third tonalamatl division, not a monkey's head, it is true, but the head of an animal which recalls somewhat Xolotl, and which is represented in the Borgian codex, page 16, near the day sign Ozo- matli, " monkey as the god of song and gaming. Above the god stretches a broad sky full of clouds and rain, and under him stand the maize plants, completely flooded with water. The fourth figure, the lower one on the left, represents the south. The fourth division of the tonalamatl and the fourth division of the cycle belong to it, one represented by its first day, " 1 king vulture the other by its first year, " 1 rabbit The god is painted red and wears as a helmet mask the sign of the fourth tonalamatl division, a vulture'vS head. Above him is represented a clear, sunny sky, sending down rays of light. Under him, in the midst of a yellow, pulverized mass, are ears of maize in pairs, that is, abortions, and a kind of rabbit, with the face of a death's-head, feeds on them. In the Avater which streams from the jug in the god's hand there is seen, as in the figure of the north, a hatchet, but with the addition of a tongue of flame shooting out from the handle. The fifth figure represents the center, or the direction from above downward. No day signs accompany it, for it belongs to no divi- sion of the calendar. The god is striped in white and red, which are the colors of the gods of the night heaven and the twilight, and he wears on his head the usual ornament of the rain god. The starry sky and the sign of day and night are represented above him. Below him sit the earth goddesses. The sign of war — shield, bundle of javelins, spear thrower, and banner — is seen coming out of the water which streams down from the jug. In that which runs down from the hatchet-shaped lightning serpent are pictured a skeleton and a jawbone. A variant of this interesting page occurs on page 2